What Is the #1 Dental Problem in Children?

What Is the #1 Dental Problem in Children?

Dec 01, 2022

Many problems affect children’s oral health, including tooth decay, tongue thrusting, lip sucking, thumb-sucking and premature tooth loss. Although baby teeth eventually receive replacements with permanent teeth maintaining the baby teeth healthy is essential to the child’s overall health and well-being.

What Is the Most Common Dental Disease in Children?

As mentioned above, many problems affect a child’s dental health. However, the most common dental disease in children is tooth decay, sensitivity, pediatric gingivitis, dental emergencies, orthodontic problems and dental anxiety.

Tooth Decay

Children are not proficient in brushing and flossing without supervision. In addition, many children have a sugar-rich diet to make dental cavities a significant issue. Plaque accumulating on children’s teeth erodes tooth enamel wearing down the tooth and causing cavities. Family dental care recommends that parents help children brush their teeth until they become adept at the task. Parents must ensure children are removing food particles, bacteria, and plaque to get rid of it every day to help prevent tooth decay. If children develop cavities, the treatment for holes in teeth requires fillers after drilling away the decay and filling the hollow space with durable composite material.

Dental Emergencies

Dental emergencies do not occur after providing prior information. Children are frequently playing and falling and involved in an accident-related environment that can result in chipped, broken or fractured teeth. In severe conditions, children might have a permanent tooth knocked out entirely. Permanent tooth loss in children needs immediate treatment from the child’s pediatric dentist or family dentistry in Edmonton, AB, because the dentist can help reinsert the tooth back into its socket, allowing it to reattach using a retainer.

Pediatric Gingivitis

If you think gum disease is just an adult problem, you are sadly mistaken because children can also develop this infection because of excess plaque on their teeth and below the gum line. In reality, pediatric gingivitis is relatively common in children resulting in symptoms similar to those in adults. Unfortunately, the infection is more aggressive in children with improper dental hygiene. Gingivitis is entirely preventable by brushing and flossing. Unfortunately, if left untreated in children, the infection can cause children’s teeth to emerge crooked or crowded, making it practically impossible for them to clean their teeth and become vulnerable to additional conditions.

Orthodontic Problems

Rarely do children have perfectly aligned teeth without intervention. Thankfully orthodontic treatments are available to help children or teenagers smile with confidence. Orthodontic issues generally result from genetics, with the shape and size of the jaw determining how your child’s teeth emerge and develop. Familiar misalignment issues in children include overbites, underbites, open bites and gaps between teeth. Children must receive their first orthodontic assessment by seven because if the child develops significant overcrowding or misalignments, their teeth can result in jaw problems, cracked teeth, and dental hygiene issues.

What’s The Most Important Goal of Preventive Dentistry?

Brushing and flossing are essential to keep children’s and adult’s teeth and gums healthy. However, preventive dentistry includes:

  • Adopting techniques like replacing your toothbrush every quarterly and scheduling appointments with the dentist for preventive dental care.
  • Having a nutritious diet.
  • Receiving advice from the dentist on optimal preventive methods to safeguard your dental health as best as possible.

Preventive dentistry aims to avoid infections and injuries in the mouth by advising excellent dental hygiene practices and using measures to protect your teeth and gums from damage due to injuries to help prevent unnecessary expenditure on expensive dental treatments. Even if you possess dental insurance, the costs of dental therapies quickly add up, making it beneficial for you to adopt preventive dentistry practices and benefit from them.

Preventive dental care is not merely for children but also helps adults and seniors maintain their teeth in appropriate condition to help prevent the need for dental implants or other restorative solutions. Preventive care is also essential for pregnant women because it helps avoid premature birth and low birth weight in children.

Teaching children preventive care is a challenging subject. Parents must supervise them during their early years until six or seven when they develop the skills essential to maintain excellent dental hygiene, care for their teeth and gums, and smile and keep it throughout their lives.

If your child is affected by the most familiar dental problems among children, you find it beneficial to schedule a visit to Kensington Dental Clinic. The dental practice can help your kid realize the benefits of keeping their teeth and gums healthy by teaching them preventive care to safeguard their smile and overall health.

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