My daughter recently had her first dental check-up at Tooth Town at Evia, Lifestyle Mall. We are relatively new in the area so we decided to take a chance in this clinic. The clinic had an inviting atmosphere, it was clean, bright and a handful of toys were available to make our daughter feel at home.
Tooth Town
Our dentist for kids, Dr. Ian Gonzalez, immediately played nursery songs to build rapport. He was able to warn us that the procedure will make our child cry but will only take a few minutes. After which, he gave us what he calls the "usual speech" given to parents- a light load of "must know" information which I certainly encourage parents to take into heart.
If you are a brand new parent, you should take your child for his/her first dental visit within six months of the eruption of the first tooth or by his/her 1st birthday (Source: American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry)
According to Dr. Gonzalez, most parents do not bring their children for a dental visit because of the mindset that "primary teeth are only temporary". This is failure to realize how primary teeth will impact your child's APPEARANCE, SPEECH, CHEWING and most importantly, the framework it provides for the permanent teeth.
During this visit, our dentist also showed us the ff:
- How to position our 2 year old child during brushing
- Both parents have a role, one would be in charge of brushing while the other holds the child. My husband and I were instructed to sit in front of each other, The child sits on the lap- facing the parent, who will facilitate the lying down of the child in a supine position, holding down the child's arms and legs. The other parent holds the head of the child and facilitates brushing.
- How to keep your child's mouth open
Slip your index finger at one corner of your child's mouth. Gently let it slide along the inside surface of the cheek until you reach the gum at the back of the mouth.
The FLUORIDE VARNISH appeared as a pale yellow gel but has a pleasant taste and smell. In less than a minute, application was done. It is advisable to do as early as the recommended first dental visit then at least twice a year. After getting a fluoride varnish, we were instructed to skip brushing that evening. Some parents are not only fearful of fluoride varnish but even in using fluoride toothpaste.
These are the Age-Appropriate Fluoride toothpaste Recommendation of the Philippine Pediatric Dental Society (PPDSI)
According to PPDSI, the recommended smear size for infants and toddlers, when ingested twice daily is safe and still below the maximum allowable amount for this age group. To prevent ingestion of a toxic amount, It is important to SUPERVISE your child during brushing and to keep the toothpaste far from reach. However, if you suspect your child to have ingested more than what is recommended, our dentist instructed us to induce vomiting and bring to the emergency room right away.
Here are some tips to prevent Childhood Caries:
1- Did u know that when you share a cup or spoon or kiss your toddler, you can pass on bacteria through your saliva which can cause tooth decay? Make sure you brush and floss your teeth and don't share utensils
2- Wean your child from bottle use by 18 months. If you are having a difficult time like me, you can try to put only water in the nighttime bottle or you can put water in the bottle after your toddler has drank milk so as to rinse the mouth and prevent prolonged exposure of bacteria to the sugars in the milk which they convert to acids that attack the enamel and lead to dental caries.
Schedule your child's first dental visit and i hope it will be as helpful and pleasant as it was for us 🙂 For appointments at Tooth Town Evia, you may text: 09179494557
– Katrina Rey MD
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