Your child needs to go to the dentist. That’s a fact. Here are a few things you should know if you think otherwise.
Pediatric Dental Disease Is More Common Than You Might Think Pediatric dental disease is a lot more common than you might believe. Research shows that that it’s actually five times more common than asthma, and it’s even seven times more common than hay fever. If your child was feeling unwell, you’d take them to the doctor, just as you’d take your child to the dentist if they had a toothache. The trouble is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It’s easier to prevent pediatric dental disease than it is to treat it.
Early Childhood Caries Are Dangerous ECC is an infectious disease that can begin as early in a child’s life as age six months old, when the teeth first begin to emerge. Pediatric dentistry defines ECC as the presence of one or more decayed teeth, missing teeth, or filled tooth surfaces in any primary tooth in a child six-years-old or younger. Oftentimes, it’s incredibly painful and progresses quickly. If it’s left untreated, it can destroy a child’s teeth, have a long-lasting impact on a child’s overall health.
Good Habits Begin Early If your child goes to the dentist when they’re young and learns from early on that dental health matters, they’re going to continue to visit the dentist and practice good hygiene throughout their adult life. This is important. Studies show that one in four adults don’t brush their teeth twice a day like they’re supposed to, including one-third of men. Worse, 50% of surveyed adults don’t visit their dentist regularly every six months.
Pediatric dentistry is more important than you might have thought. Dentists not only help children have great smiles, but keeps them healthy, too. If you have any questions about the importance of pediatric dentistry, or even the dental procedures of general dentistry, feel free to share in the comments.