Taking Your Child to the Dentist Early: Why Is It Important?
The number of children suffering from dental decay has continued to rise over the past several years. You may think you do not need to take your child to the dentist until he or she gets a bit older, but it is never too early to take him or her to the dental office. In fact, starting earlier could help prevent your little one from developing some cavities.
Choose a Kid-Friendly Dentist
Before taking your kid to the dentist for the first time, consider finding a dental professional who specializes in treating children. The office you currently go to may be for adults. Even if the dentist is willing to check your child's teeth and perform different procedures, the office may be intimidating, especially if your little one has never been there before.
A kid-friendly dentist will often have books and games for children to play before they get called back for their routine visit or scheduled procedure. These games and books in the office often help to distract kids so that they are not feeling as anxious or nervous about their visit. This is also great because then the children who go to the office can associate dental-office visits with having a good time. In addition to games and books, the staff members may be even more patient if your child is getting upset because they are used to working with children each day.
Calm Fears with Dental-Related Activities
There are several ways to prepare your child for what to expect during a dental-office visit. There are books on going to the dentist, but there are also several dental-related activities you can do with your child. For example, you can buy a plastic toy dental kit and demonstrate the process of having your teeth checked on one of your child's dolls.
You could also buy a clay dental set for your child. The clay dental set toy set allows children to mold teeth out of clay and place them on a plastic model head. Once the teeth are in place, your little one can then use the tools that the set comes with to pretend he or she is checking the teeth or filling a cavity. This is an educational toy that can keep your child occupied for hours while also calming his or her fears of going to the dentist.
Learn the Importance of Going to the Dental Office Early
You may feel like your child is too young to sit in the dental chair, but kid-friendly dentists have safe ways to keep children seated while they are checking the teeth or performing certain procedures. In fact, you may even have the opportunity to hold your little one during a routine checkup if he or she is only one or two years old.
It is important to take your little one to the dentist as soon as the teeth come in for an important reason. Decay can develop on the teeth at a fast pace. If your little one has a small amount of decay, the dentist may be able to solve the problem with a tooth-colored filling. However, if the problem goes untreated for a while, the decay may be too severe. As a result, a filling would no longer suffice. The dentist may need to place crowns over the teeth. In some of the worst situations, the decay can lead to an infection, and that means the teeth would have to get pulled out.
Keep your child's teeth healthy and in good condition at an early age. Even though they are baby teeth and will eventually come out, it is still important to take good care of them. And when you start taking your little one to a dental office like Neu Family Dental Center, you are teaching him or her great oral hygiene habits.