The shark has got it made when it comes to teeth. No shark ever has to worry about decay or gaps because they have an endless supply of teeth waiting to replace any that get broken or fall out. Sharks’ teeth don’t have any roots. In fact, some species of shark get through about 50,000 teeth in their lifetime.
Humans are different from sharks. Nature supplies us with one set of adult teeth, with roots. When they’re gone, they’re gone. That’s why it’s very important that we teach our kids to take really good care of them.
And we don’t appear to be doing a very good job. Tooth decay among the children of the UK is still very high, no doubt because of the amount of sugar in their diets. A survey in September 2014 found that 12% of three-year-olds had cavities. Kids get a particular kind of decay that shows up on the front teeth and then spreads rapidly. It is caused by drinking sugary drinks from a spouted cup when children are being weaned. Scary stuff, and totally avoidable if you bring your child to the dentist for regular check-ups.
At Smilecraft, we are hot on preventive dentistry for kids in Stevenage. We check your children’s teeth very carefully for decay from the time they first appear. This is when we recommend you start bringing your child in for check-ups. We also recommend that you bring them in before that. Allowing them to tag along to your own appointments or those of older siblings, gets them used to the dental clinic. They will be more relaxed when it’s their turn for a check-up, maybe even eager to finally get a chance to copy you for real.
Because children’s teeth are so susceptible to decay, we offer two treatments that provide extra protection. One is to paint fluoride onto the teeth to mineralise the enamel against decay. We can also paint sealant on to the back molars. This covers the fissures in the chewing surfaces, where decay tends to occur. Seeing young patients also allows us to keep an eye out for issues with the bite and spot teeth that are going to come through out of alignment.