How your family dentist in Grand Rapids, MI, can help protect your child’s smile
Baby teeth are an important beginning to your baby’s smile, so it’s important to practice good dental hygiene at an early age. Your family dentist can help you know what to do when taking care of your baby’s first smile.
Dr. Jacob Miller at Miller Dental in Grand Rapids, MI, offers a wide variety of family and general dentistry services for all the members of your family.
Baby teeth are space holders for the permanent teeth, which will come in later and push the baby teeth out. Eruption times can vary between children, depending on a number of factors, but generally speaking:
- The first tooth erupts at 6 to 10 months, and it’s usually the lower central incisor.
- The upper central incisors erupt at 8 to 12 months
- Other teeth follow, first the lower, and then corresponding upper teeth erupt
- Eventually, your child will have 20 primary teeth
Did you know that the minute the first baby tooth erupts, your child is at risk of tooth decay? It’s true, and that’s one reason why you need to practice great dental hygiene starting when your child is young.
Some important tips to remember:
Don’t put your baby to bed with a bottle. This is just like bathing your child’s teeth in sugary liquid. Generalized tooth decay, known as “baby bottle syndrome” can occur.
Gently clean your child's teeth with a baby toothbrush or a piece of gauze.
Make your child’s first dental visit a high priority. The first dental visit should happen within your child’s first year.
Fluoride supplements are important if you live in an area where the water is not fluoridated. Your dentist or pediatrician can prescribe fluoride supplements for your child.
Your baby’s first teeth are important. To learn more about the importance of baby teeth and how to care for them, call Dr. Jacob Miller at Miller Dental in Grand Rapids, MI. You can reach him in the office by calling (616) 364-7039, so call now!