Sucking is a natural reflex for babies. They start to develop and practice it even before they are born. Drawing is a regular part of development that is soothing to children well into their first years of life. Using pacifier may affect to teeth development in babies. Find out below is it so dangerous?
In reality, drawing frequently brings convenience after a child no longer has to get nourishment from a breast or bottle. Numerous children find comfort by drawing on hands, fingers or pacifiers. Parents frequently question if these drawing habits can create a problem for a child’s teeth or mouth.
How Does Pacifier Cause Teeth Damage
During a child’s first few years, sucking habits probably won’t damage his or her mouth. However regular and long-term sucking can cause issues. This is specifically true if the routine continues after baby teeth begin to fall out. Long-term sucking can cause:
- The leading front teeth to slant out
- The bottom front teeth to tilt in
- The upper and lower jaws to be crookeded
- The roof of the mouth to be narrower side to side
Here are a couple of things to think about if your child uses a pacifier:
- Buy products that are constructed as one piece. There should not be any parts that can break off and possibly be swallowed or breathed into the lungs.
- Never secure a pacifier on a string or pendant around your child’s neck. Your baby might unintentionally be strangled.
- Do not try to soothe a fussy baby by dipping a pacifier in honey or sugar water. This will increase your child’s risk of tooth decay.
Use positive reinforcement to encourage older children to quit the pacifier.
How to Keep Babies Teeth from Damage
Teeth damage caused by pacifier is quite common and in most cases it’s linked to different factors you should pay attention.
Early Youth Tooth Decay: The Functions of the Bottle and Breastfeeding
Lots of babies satisfy their desire to draw by utilizing a bottle or sippy cup as a pacifier. Others continue breastfeeding long after it is essential for nutrition. Frequent sucking or drinking anything other than plain water from a bottle or cup might increase a child’s risk of developing early and extensive dental caries. While breastfeeding is a great and healthy practice, constant breastfeeding can still increase the risk of decay.
When sugars or other carbohydrates enter the mouth, they provide food for cavity-causing bacteria. The more times a child eats, treats or drinks in a day, the more food the bacteria get. This makes it easier for a child to get cavities at a very early age. This condition is called early childhood caries. Early childhood caries spreads rapidly. It typically causes pain, can lead to a dental abscess, and puts the child at higher risk of having cavities throughout life.
Dental caries is a severe problem for children. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Avoidance (CDC) reports that 28% of U.S. children ages 2 to 5 have actually had some dental caries. This disease causes pain that disrupts eating, sleeping, finding out and playing. Children with substantial early tooth decay may need to have root canal treatment or have actually teeth eliminated. This can be done as early as a child’s 2nd birthday and frequently needs to take place in a healthcare facility under general anesthesia.
In the earliest stages of early youth caries, the teeth might appear to have little white spots or lines on them. These spots or lines often show up along the edges of the gums. As the disease advances, these patches become brown and chipped. This type of tooth decay can get worse really rapidly and cause severe dental problems. Parents ought to call a dental practitioner as soon as they notice these issues.
Long-Term Consequences
Baby teeth stay in children’s mouths long after babyhood. In fact, a few of these teeth stay till children become teens. For this reason, it is necessary to keep baby teeth healthy and to stop tooth decay as soon as it is found. Similar to adult teeth, tooth decay in baby teeth can result in pain and difficulty with consuming and speaking. If baby teeth are eliminated or lost early, other teeth can move into the area that’s left. This can cause the adult teeth to come in congested or jagged. Similar to adult teeth, dental infections can end up being lethal if left unattended.
Preventing Decay
Decay can generally be avoided by keeping the mouth healthy. This needs healthy eating, routine brushing and flossing, and sees to the dental practitioner.
Here are numerous things you can do to avoid cavities in your children:
- Take your child to see a dental professional no behind age 1 as a foundation for good oral health.
- Do not allow your child to walk around with a bottle or sippy cup to continually drink from or use as a pacifier.
- Whether you’re breastfeeding or utilizing a bottle, clean your baby’s gums and teeth with a damp washcloth or gauze pad at least twice a day.
- If you have had cavities yourself, take unique care to avoid sharing your mouth’s bacteria with your child. The bacteria that cause early youth caries are usually passed from moms to children. This can take place in many methods. For instance, you might taste the child’s food with a spoon that you then use to feed your child. Or you may enable your child to suck on his or her finger after putting it in your mouth.
- Make sure your local water contains an optimum level of fluoride. Fluoride helps avoid tooth decay. If your water does not have adequate fluoride in it, ask your dental expert or pediatrician how your child’s fluoride requirements need to be managed.