Children dentistry / pediatric dentistry

Pediatric dentistry has always been one of the favorite parts of my career. I am a general dentist and only share with you my experience of the past 30 years.

Every parent of a newborn asks me when is the best time to bring in the child for their first check up. My answer has always been around age of 3-4 years so the child can communicate with the dental team . there are a few excption to that rule.

First and foremost is if a child complains of any pain related to the oral cavity.      second reason would be if there are visible cavities or stain present on the teeth.the most common cause for both of these is excess sugar consumption. unfortanutely we still see children who sleep with a bottle of milk all night long. this leads to a condition called Baby bottle syndrome with severe cavities on all the front teeth.

the next reason is trauma caused by any type of accident to a young childs teeth.

if we run into a child who is younger than age of 3 years and needs urgent dental care, we refer them to a childern specialist or pediatric dentist. 

At the end i would like to reemphasize that the biggest enemy is sugar in our childrens diet. If we can limit the sugar intake to a minimum we delay chances of developing cavities.

Soda,candy and even some fruit juices have agreat deal of sugar, please read the label carefully. brushing and flossing are also very important along with regular check ups at the dentist office.

if you have any questions regaring this please contact Westminster Family Dentistry at (714)893-1356