BABY TEETH/MILK TEETH PART 1.


Hey everyone!
Children are a bundle of joy and so are their sweet, innocent smiles.
Parents today are becoming really conscious when it comes to pearly whites of their babies and so they have certain questions in their mind regarding the same.


Humans have two sets of teeth. The first set of teeth is known as baby teeth or milk teeth. The second set is known as the permanent teeth or the adult teeth.


DURATION AND TOTAL NUMBER OF MILK TEETH IN A BABY MOUTH.
The first milk tooth erupts when a baby is six months to one year old and lasts until the baby is 12-13 years. They are 20 in number.

MAINTENANCE OF ORAL HYGIENE BEFORE ERUPTION OF TEETH.
This can be done by wiping the babies’ gums with a cool wet gauze, twice a day. This should be done daily till the time first milk tooth erupts. This also helps in massaging the gums of the babies.





TEETHING
Some infants tend to become irritated when the first tooth erupts in their mouth.

  They refuse to take food and tend to drool, become fussy, and sleep less. 

 Rashes around the mouth can also be observed in some cases and they also suffer from conditions such as fever, diarrhea and vomiting. 

 This is often attributed to the eruption of first tooth in their mouth.

  But the truth is, during this period, the infants tend to keep something or the other in their mouth which causes an infection.

Treatment :

This can be treated by application of glycerin on the gums of infants and by giving clean teether. 

 Gentle application of pressure with a clean finger or placement of a cold (but not frozen) object such as spoon or teething rings can help alleviate the symptoms.



The baby is also required to chew on a washcloth, or food products such as apple or carrot.

Over the counter drugs are generally not preferred in case of infants and are taken only when home remedies do not suffice.

WHEN SHOULD THE FIRST DENTAL CHECKUP BE DONE?
The first visit to the dentist must be paid as soon as the first tooth erupts in the mouth.

He will examine and provide instructions for the maintenance of oral health of babies and children and provide treatments if any problem arises.

  Subsequent visits should be done on a periodic basis (every year).



WHY ARE MILK TEETH IMPORTANT?
Milk teeth help in speech, in chewing food, and also nutrition. They also help in providing sufficient space for the permanent teeth to erupt.

However, sometimes parents have a callous attitude, assuming that the milk teeth won’t last long they tend to show negligence towards the child’s teeth.

This negligence, compounded with excessive sweet consumption and a habit of sleeping with feeding bottle at night leads to tooth decay which affects multiple teeth and the is known as NURSING BOTTLE CARIES.



The bacterial by-products pass through the milk teeth and cause discoloration of the underlying permanent teeth.

Sometimes, the decay process is so widespread and deep that, at times, no treatment can be executed apart from removal of these milk teeth, and if proper steps are not taken in order to maintain the spaces occupied by these teeth, the permanent teeth may move and drift into these spaces leading to crowding (malalignment) of these teeth, which requires treatment with braces.

HOW TO MAINTAIN OPTIMUM HEALTH OF THE MILK TEETH?
Brushing twice a day, initially under adult supervision.

Fluoride toothpastes are available, and a pea sized amount must be used. 
Proper care should be taken to ensure that the child does not swallow toothpaste.



Regular visits to the dentists at a periodic basis.
The dentist may apply “Pit and Fissure Sealants” that helps to slow down the decay process.



He may also apply fluoride to the baby teeth which makes the teeth stronger and resistant to decay.


SPACES IN BETWEEN MILK TEETH.
Those should not be a concern!
Those spaces are physiological and are actually a good thing to have in milk teeth because it helps in providing enough space for the future permanent teeth to erupt in alignment.



If there would not be any spaces between the milk teeth then in future when the permanent teeth erupt it can result in irregularly placed teeth.



That is all for today's blog. I hope you understand whatever has been covered in this blog.

Part 2 would be a continuation of the same topic since this quite a vast topic.

Till then, happy reading :)

Also, for any suggestions or questions feel free to mail me at : muskan.3096@gmail.com

Thank you!

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