Smilesthat Grow
"Nurturing Little Smiles With Big Care"
Our mission is to help children grow healthy and confident by providing gentle and expert pediatric dental care.
Happy Smiles
When you bring your child in for his or her first appointment with Dr. Gerel Emgushova, she will sit down with you and discuss all options for helping your child to have healthier teeth and a great smile.
She knows that your child may be anxious about the thought of visiting a dentist, and will make you feel comfortable and empowered with knowledge you need while she discusses the different type treatments available for him or her. Dr. Gerel Emgushova embraces your questions and concerns because she wants you to understand the importance of good oral hygiene, and how it will affect your child’s well-being. When your child undergoes any treatment with Dr. Gerel Emgushova, he or she will be gaining invaluable information on how to properly engage in good oral health care that will last a lifetime.
Baby Teething
Your child can begin cutting his or her primary teeth (baby teeth) before he or she is even born. This is true. There are documented cases where some newborn babies come into the world with a few teeth to their credit. This is rare, but it does happen. Most infants will begin cutting their teeth between the ages of 6 and 12 months. Their gums will become red and swollen which can make them more fussy than normal. They will be cutting primary teeth off and on until the age of three. During this time, try to keep them comfortable by letting them teethe on a very cold or frozen pacifier or infant’s teething ring.
It is not a good idea to give them hard teething biscuits due to the sugar content that could cause cavities in your child at an early age. It is equally important to remember not to let your child fall asleep with a bottle in his or her mouth unless it contains water. A bottle with milk when left in a baby’s mouth for long periods of time can cause cavities. Try to remove the bottle from the child’s mouth as soon as possible.
Your Infant's New Teeth
Your infant’s new teeth provide the building blocks for his or her secondary (permanent) teeth. This is why it’s important to care for them from the emergence of the very first primary tooth; they will help the secondary teeth to “find their way” to their proper place in due time. Children should start brushing their teeth around the age of three or when it can easily be communicated to them not to swallow the toothpaste. Until then, when they are infants and become toddlers, you can wipe their gums and teeth with clean gauze, and then slowly introduce them to using a soft bristle tooth brush, using only water, until they are old enough to properly use toothpaste.
Infants and toddlers can and do develop cavities and sometimes they will need to have a tooth extracted before its normal time to fall out. A missing tooth can cause your child to have a misaligned bite, jaw development problems, and improper speech annunciation. Many don’t realize how important it is to care for a child’s baby teeth because they will last until the age of six when permanent teeth begin to emerge. If you are uncertain about caring for your infant’s teeth, Dr. Gerel Emgushova can get you off to a good start with invaluable information on the subject.
Preventing Baby Bottle Tooth Decay
The best way to prevent baby bottle tooth decay is to remove the bottle from your baby’s mouth as soon as he or she falls asleep. Milk and saliva will pool in the baby’s mouth and this can cause a breeding ground of bacteria. If your baby insists on not sleeping without a bottle, give them a pacifier or a bottle of water (if age appropriate) and this should help to keep them happy and cavity-free. Deerpath Orthodontics & Family Dental welcomes any questions or concerns you may have in providing better oral health care for yourself and your child. Please ask us; we want to help.
A Child's First Dental Visit
Because infants and toddlers can develop cavities in their primary teeth, it’s important to schedule his or her first dental check up when they reach the age of one. This is a good time to have their teeth cleaned and monitored for proper growth and alignment. It is also a good time to inquire about proper care and treatment with Dr. Gerel Emgushova (if necessary) at that time. If the thought of taking your one year old to the dentist for the first time causes you anxiety, you are not alone. You can take measures to prepare your child for the visit by making it fun. Stay upbeat about the visit and let your child know that you will be with them the entire time. Most dentists will ask you to sit the child in your lap during the exam and this will take a lot of anxiety away from both patient and parent.
Why Primary Teeth Are Important
Primary teeth are vital for different developmental stages of a child’s life. As a child is born, it will consume only liquids. As they grow, they will develop teeth to prepare them for whole foods consumption. Healthy and properly aligned teeth will aid in the overall health and nutrition of the child and will promote greater well-being, and primary teeth help with proper speech and communication development. Primary teeth will also help the permanent teeth to find their proper alignment when they begin to emerge around the age of six years old for most children. This is why it is of utmost importance to properly care for primary teeth and to give them every possible chance to stay healthy until they are ready to fall out on their own, and be replaced by permanent teeth.
Good Diet And Healthy Teeth
A good diet directly affects the health of teeth and bones. A proper diet should include the right amount of protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats each day. Avoid sugary snacks and foods loaded with saturated fats. Opt for fresh fruits and vegetables and healthy lean protein each day; avoid sugar laden soft drinks and go for whole milk or natural fruit juices instead. Teach your child to brush his or her teeth after each meal when they are old enough to brush on their own. Before that, wipe your child’s teeth with clean gauze or a wash cloth to help remove bacteria that can cause cavities and plaque from forming. Once a child engages in these good practices at an early age, they will stick with them for the rest of their lives.
Infant Tooth Eruption
For the first three years of your child’s life, he or she will be cutting their primary teeth, and this can be highly uncomfortable for some children. Signs of tooth eruption can range from drooling, to biting anything in sight, to nasal congestion, or ear pain and crying. During these times, keep your baby comfortable by rubbing their gums with a cold cloth, give them a frozen teething ring or let them teethe on a frozen carrot. These should all help to ease the pain of teething. Look for the emergence of lower incisors from the age of three to six months. These will be followed by the upper incisors, and followed by the remaining teeth with a total of 20 primary
teeth by the age of three. Beginning at the age of six, primary teeth are replaced by the permanent teeth of 32, including wisdom teeth.
