Kids Dental Emergencies

Dealing with children’s dental issues can sometimes create stress in a parent’s life. At a very early age, children learn that their teeth can hurt. Helping your children to not fear the dentist as a result of sometimes painful dental experiences is very important. If you can help your children establish at a young age good dental habits and healthy emotions toward their dental needs, you can help them create a lifelong experience of good dental health. Here are a few ways to handle some common dental emergencies that you and your kids may face.

Toothache

Do not overreact to your child’s toothache; however, it is also important not to ignore your child’s toothache. Sometimes a toothache can be caused by something as simple as food lodged between the teeth or beneath the gum line. Rinse your child’s teeth with warm water and thoroughly floss to make sure this isn’t the cause of the discomfort. If your child’s toothache will require a dental visit, be sure to comfort your child by providing reassurance that a visit to the dentist will be a pleasant experience and will help him or her feel better.

Chipped or Fractured Tooth

A chipped or fractured tooth is a common childhood dental injury due to most children’s high levels of activity. A chipped or fractured tooth can be very painful, so it is important to not underestimate your child’s level of pain following this type of injury. Your kid’s dentist should be contacted immediately, and you should follow the dentist's instructions precisely. Quick action can sometimes ensure that the tooth can be repaired. A chipped tooth should not be ignored, because a severely chipped tooth can become infected.

Knocked Out Tooth

If your child sustains a serious injury resulting in a tooth being knocked out, you should first make sure that your child has not sustained any other more serious injuries, such as a blow to the head. If your child’s tooth was knocked out as a result of a more serious injury, take your child to the emergency room. Recover the tooth and take it with you to the hospital. If your child is not otherwise injured, recover the tooth and visit your general dentist as soon as possible.

Why Wear a Mouth Guard for Playing Football

Photo | Torrey Wiley

The popularity of organized youth sports brings with it a sense of fun sportsmanship. However, with those team sports also comes the risk of dental injuries, which can really affect the dental development of kids and teens. Student athletes are 60 percent more likely to sustain these types of injuries than other kids.

According to the National Youth Sports Foundation for Safety, the best way to ensure that your child does not suffer from one of these injuries is to make sure your child or teen always uses a mouth guard. Mouth guards can greatly decrease the number of these injuries. It is important to make sure that your child’s mouth guard is fitted properly to their teeth shape and mouth size. This will increase the protection for your child.

Some of the injuries that can result from not using a mouth guard include dental fractures, which can be very painful and, in severe cases, can even cause fracture of the dental roots. If your child or teen does suffer this type of injury, it is important to recover the tooth fragments and to get to your dentist as soon as possible.

Avulsions are another severe type of injury that can be prevented with the use of a mouth guard. An avulsion is an injury resulting in the entire tooth, including root, being knocked out. This type of injury can be very painful as well as emotionally traumatizing for kids and teens who already have their adult teeth. This can result in extensive dental work, which is both expensive and stressful for your kids and for you.

Luxation is a severe dental injury that knocks a tooth loose and changes the position of the tooth in the mouth. This type of injury also creates the need for extensive dental work in order to reposition the tooth.

To provide your kids with the best protection, talk with your kids' dentist or your general dentist to find out the best type and size of mouth guard for your child’s mouth.

Caring for Baby Teeth: What You Need to Know

Teething is a difficult process for babies as well as for parents. When you have a baby who is teething, you want to make sure you know what needs to be done throughout the process to help with the overall development of your child’s teeth.

Signs that your baby is teething

There’s likely going to be some fussiness from your baby as he or she starts to teeth because of what’s going on. You may notice that your child is drooling more, becoming more irritable, or not sleeping normally. You can provide comfort with a cool spoon or a clean, cool teething ring.

When should I start brushing my baby’s teeth?

Even before a tooth breaks through the gums, there are things that you can be doing. Your baby’s mouth and gums can be cleaned with a soft cloth or an infant toothbrush. This helps to remove plaque and prepare your baby for the brushing that will come.

As soon as the teeth have broken through, you should brush twice a day. The brush and the toothpaste should be designed especially for infants.

If your baby sleeps with a bottle, we recommend making sure that there is only water or a sugar free beverage inside it. Milk, juice or anything that has sugar can create bacterial acid and which breaks down tooth enamel, leading to cavities.

When should I take my child to the dentist?

The moment that you notice the first tooth, you should schedule a dental visit. This can help to prevent any cavities from forming down the road. You can learn about how to introduce fluoride, which can slow the process of cavities that have started, and sometimes stop the process, as well as to prevent tooth decay.

How to choose a kids’ dentist

When choosing a dentist, make sure you choose one that loves kids. There’s a big difference in the approaches of general dentists who enjoy children versus those who don’t. Many people in the world fear the dentist all because of an unsatisfactory first dental visit. At Playtime Dental, we make sure that it’s a positive experience for kids from day one.

Kids should enjoy going to the dentist. Playtime Dental fosters a nurturing environment where kids are going to learn that going to the dentist can actually be fun, especially when they remember to brush and floss daily. We cater to families and accept various HMO insurance plans for your convenience.

Remember this formula: One plus one = Zero. One baby tooth + one dental visit = Zero cavities for your kids! Make an appointment to learn more about baby teething and get your child’s teeth taken care of today. 

Nutrition Tips for Babies and Kids

As parents, we want our kids to be healthy and happy, but if your kids are picky eaters, you know that getting them to eat healthy foods can be challenging at best and downright frustrating at worst. What you probably aren't aware of is that nutrition not only affects your child's health but also has a major impact on dental health. It also isn't just about what your kids eat but how often they eat it and how. For example, if they have a sugary piece of candy, the longer it takes them to finish it, the worse it is for their dental health. When sugar sits in their mouth for long periods of time, it leads to a much a higher rate of tooth decay then if they eat the candy quickly. The same is true for soda and other sugary drinks; if they sip on the beverage for hours, it leads to more erosion of the enamel on the teeth.

The good news is that you have several ways to help your child avoid dental problems that arise from improper nutrition and eating habits. Here are a few tips to help keep your child's smile as perfect as possible.

·         Limit snacking: Children should have snacks no more than three times a day. Make these snacks nutritious; items such as yogurt, peanut butter, chocolate milk, and cheese are kid- and teeth-friendly.

·         Save sugars and starches for meal times: Sugars and foods with starch, including bread and pasta, take longer to clear the mouth, but if eaten with meals, they break down faster, reducing the chance of decay.

·         Don't send your child to bed with a bottle: Sending your kids to bed with milk, formula or juice means that they can potentially spend the entire night with sugars from these drinks lingering in the mouth, leading to much faster decay.

You don't have to deprive your children of fun snacks; just be aware of what they are eating and when. When in doubt, speak to a pediatric dentist, who can advise you on what you are doing right and where you can improve.