When Should You Start Taking Your Child to a Dentist?

Dental health and oral hygiene are very important for children, as it is for adults. Brisbane dentists recommend checking your child’s dental health from an early age to ensure that no complications arise at a later stage. Those of you with crooked or uneven teeth could probably blame your parents for overlooking some small issues regarding dental health while you were growing up. Now, as a parent, these are the issues you need to correct to ensure that your children have access to a nice and beautiful smile. It gives children self-confidence, and raises their self-esteem. 

Starting dental check-ups early is crucial for your child’s oral health, and Dentist in Tarzana, CA, echo this sentiment. While some parents may believe that dental visits can wait until a child is older, the American Dental Association recommends scheduling the first dental appointment by the age of one, or within six months of the eruption of the first tooth.

Doctors and parents tend to differ, on when kids should have their first check-ups. Parents must be privy to this information, since most think that it should be done much later. About one in every six parents think that they should delay this visit until the child is older. Most think that the ideal time is when the kids are about four years old.  There are a couple of reasons why it is important to start children’s dental visits when they are about 12 months or younger. Let’s go through some of them. 

1. Creating confidence and parents knowledge

Dental check-ups are not necessarily meant for treatment. As a parent, you will be making a lot of such trips, so it helps to have the child start getting comfortable with that environment at an early age. At first, the child can sit on your lap as the dentist conducts his check, but eventually, you should let the child get the confidence of sitting alone on a dentist’s operating chair. The earlier the child begins visiting the kids dental and orthodontics clinic, the less fear and anxiety he or she will have, during other visits. Children also get to have a foundation for dental health and get to learn. As a first-time parent, this is also the best time for learning what you should and shouldn’t do, concerning dental healthcare. The earlier you learn valuable dental tips, the better. 

2. Avoid dental disease

Dentists assert that dental disease or tooth decay is prevalent amongst children who fail to have dental check-ups. Your child’s pediatrician may have basic knowledge of dental health, but it is always wise to seek the services of a qualified dentist for this purpose. At that early age, dentists say that there are so many cases of tartar development. You might not notice it as a parent, but a dentist will, and prevent the same from developing into a serious disease. Dentists apply a protective fluoride, a kind of vanish when they are about 10 months to prevent the development of this disease.  

3. Perform early orthodontic evaluation

It is common to see teenagers with braces. Most parents tend to wait until their children get to their teens to perform an orthodontic evaluation. Dentists say that it shouldn’t be the case. Evaluating the development of your child’s gums, bones, teeth, and muscles should be done as early as possible so that you can make appropriate plans instead of waiting to take drastic measures. As long as you have been having frequent visits to the Dentist In New York for check-ups, and no accident has happened that might have affected your child’s dental development, you can have them undergo this evaluation at around the age of seven. After this evaluation, your dentist will advise you on the measures to take based on his or her evaluation. Don’t let your child end up with issues such as crowded teeth that affect speech development among other issues.

4. Prevent Crooked Teeth Problems

You have probably seen a lot of children around with misplaced teeth, making their dental formula look awkward. These kids usually have a lot of esteem issues since most consider themselves ugly. You can avoid such by treating or preventing dental conditions when the child is still very young. When your child is about four to seven years old, depending on their dental development, you can have them checked for cavities in addition to orthodontic evaluation. Make sure that you act on the report that your dentist gives you to prevent the mentioned problems.

Finally, even as you are seeing your child’s dentist, it is your responsibility to ensure that your child develops good dental habits. Avoid sugary foods, ensure they brush their teeth under your surveillance, and schedule dental check-ups at least three times a year.

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