- Dr. David Alfaro
Dentistry for kids!
Do you know when you should take your child to the dentist for the first time?
Many dentists recommend that you take your child to the dentist within 6 months of the first teeth showing up in the baby's mouth.
But did you know that how healthy a parent's mouths is can affect how healthy the child's teeth are?
Yes! Obviously, we want parents to develop healthy dental habits so they can have healthy mouths and teeth themselves, but it also sets an example for the kids!
And..... there is further evidence that improving parental dental health is not just about habits. Tooth decay is caused by bacteria in a process we call dental caries. This is transmissible from parent to child, so the cleaner and healthier that moms and dads keep their mouths, the lower the threat of transmission of these bad bugs to their kids (try to avoid sharing stuff like spoons).
We do see kids at our office, but.......mostly older children that have experience at the dentist and are big enough for our grown up dental equipment. We will gladly see the little ones, but once it is time for x-rays, or if we see any dental work that needs to be done, we refer our littlest patients to Certified Specialists in Pediatric dentistry.
Taking care of children with advanced dental needs is not everyday dentistry; even a couple of fillings can be a challenging task if a child is fussy. Dental specialists in pediatric dentistry have spent an extra 2-3 years in residency taking care of children with very compromised dental and general health conditions, often in hospital based settings, and their offices are set up with the pediatric patient in mind. This is why I refer my young patients to these specialists.
Once the kids are a little bit bigger and things are clean and healthy....well, then they can come back to our office if they wish.
We do not have any cool prizes though........but we do have a pretty sweet lego collection.
Please let me know if you have any questions about pediatric dental specialists in your area!
Check out my video for more information:
Dr. Dave
