Baby Teeth Are Important
Arlington, WA
 Even though they're only in your child's mouth for a short time, the care and cleaning of baby teeth is just as important as their future adult teeth. Decay can start as soon as the first tooth erupts, so it's critical to start your baby off with good habits. At Arlington Pediatric Dentistry, your child's smile is our top priority, so here are a few tips on the importance of taking care of your little one's baby teeth.
Why Are Baby Teeth Important?
Your child's baby teeth will all fall out sooner or later, but that doesn't mean they're not providing a vital function. Healthy and properly aligned baby teeth are a must as your child learns to chew and speak. Without proper dental care, a kiddo's speech development can be altered, and any pain will make it difficult for him or her to bite and chew. Baby teeth could even need a baby root canal!
Baby teeth also serve another important purpose, however - making room for your child's adult teeth. As a child grows, his or her adult teeth are growing too, just below the baby ones. The baby teeth remain in the child's mouth until the adult teeth are fully formed, and then the roots dissolve and they fall out. The adult tooth, then erupts right into the space left by the baby tooth, ensuring that your child's smile stays as adorable and straight as it was before.
What If A Baby Tooth Falls Out Early?
If a baby tooth is accidentally knocked out too early or removed by a dentist because of decay, the adult tooth underneath may not be ready to grow in yet. If this happens, we need to make sure the space doesn't close up. After all, nobody wants a mouth full of crooked teeth! Teeth that grow in out of alignment, called "maloccluded" teeth, can be difficult to clean, leading to a higher risk of disease in the future. This is why it's so important to take care of your child's baby teeth now - no decay means no need to remove the tooth!
What Can We Do?
Of course, in life things rarely happen according to plan. So if your child does end up losing a baby tooth too early, don't panic! We can help you out. The simplest and most common fix for a lost baby tooth is to insert a "saver" - a small metal device placed in the spot where the tooth used to be. The saver holds the spot until the adult tooth is ready to erupt, ensuring that everything comes in just the way it's supposed to. It's important to do this as soon as possible, so if your child knocks out a tooth, please give us a call right away!
Here at Arlington Pediatric Dentistry, your child's smile is important to us. Taking care of their baby teeth now can be vital to ensuring good dental health for the rest of their lives. Give us a call today at 360-657-1650 to make an appointment, or even if you just need some more tips!
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