Six Reasons Baby Teeth Are Important

You think that baby teeth are not vital as they eventually fall out. However, baby teeth are as important as adult teeth. Why so? Because they play a vital role in your kid’s health and can also affect their mood, diet, and overall health. Therefore, ensuring that your kid’s teeth are clean and free from any infections is essential. Additionally, taking your child to the pediatric dentist near you for a routine checkup is imperative. Below you will find why baby teeth are important and when to take your dentist to the dentist’s office near you.

About Baby Teeth

As parents, it can be challenging to focus on our kids’ teeth as we focus on their health and overall well-being. However, baby teeth should also be prioritized over other aspects of a kid’s health. Baby teeth begin to erupt at 6 months of age. After that, the teeth begin to erupt for the next two to three years.

The teeth that emerge on your kid’s gums start to fall out in the order they emerged. So, the front four, top and bottom, fall out first as they are the first to emerge. Expect your child to start losing their baby teeth around 12-14 years old. The last teeth to fall out are the baby molars, which can happen in their late teens or early 20s.

The teeth development continues until when your child reaches age 21. During this age, the wisdom teeth begin to develop as there is enough room in the jaw to accommodate them. Adults have up to 32 permanent teeth, including the third molars, known as wisdom teeth.

Dr. Fabiola Camacho recommends taking your child for pediatric dental care to ensure your child’s gums and teeth are healthy and free from any oral disease. Schedule a dental visit at 434 Dentistry – Dr. Fabiola Camacho DDS, and our dental professional will be invested in caring for your child’s teeth throughout their lifetime.

Why Baby Teeth Are Important

Your child’s teeth are vital to their social, physical, and emotional well-being. One major problem that can affect your toddler’s teeth is tooth decay. Nonetheless, with proper oral care, you’re assured that your child’s teeth will be free from this oral disease for a lifetime.

Here are reasons why your baby’s teeth are essential:

• Speech- your kid’s teeth play an essential role in how they pronounce words when talking. Moreover, misaligned teeth can affect your child’s speech, and they can struggle to pronounce certain words.
• Eating- baby teeth help your child chew food and develop good chewing and swallowing habits. Therefore, if your child has a cavity in their tooth, it can be challenging for them to eat well, leading to nutritional deficiencies. Additionally, your child cannot eat certain foods that promote strong, healthy teeth and gums.
• Confidence/ self-esteem- kids are aware of their looks, and other kids will notice if there’s something amiss about yours. Therefore, if your child has crooked, misaligned, stained, or badly damaged teeth, it can affect their confidence, especially among their friends. The lack of confidence can affect your child’s social life and personality. So, ensuring your kid’s teeth are healthy and bright translates to higher self-esteem.
• Healthy baby teeth translate to healthy adult teeth- do you know that infected baby teeth can also affect the sprouting of adult teeth? Giving your kid sugary and acidic foods and drinks can compromise the teeth’s enamel leading to cavities and tooth decay. Therefore, you should teach your kids the best and worst foods for their teeth to prevent the baby teeth from affecting their adult teeth.
• Help maintain space for the development of adult teeth- the presence of baby teeth ensures there is space for adult teeth to grow.
• Adult teeth alignment- as mentioned earlier, the health of your baby teeth dictates the health of your adult teeth. This is because each permanent tooth emerges where the baby tooth was. In addition, you should ensure that your baby’s teeth are well-aligned. If they are not, they will affect the alignment of adult teeth. Take your child to the dental clinic near you for misaligned teeth treatment to ensure proper alignment of adult teeth.

At What Age Should Kids Start Going To The Dentist?

Are you wondering when the right age to take your child to the dental clinic near you is? It would be best to take your child to the pediatric dentist as soon as the first tooth sprouts. The dentist will teach your child proper oral hygiene that they will practice for a lifetime. The earlier, the better.