Why Should Kids See the Dentist at Age 1?
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends children make their first visit to the dentist at age 1 to establish a foundation for their dental care.
This dental visit allows parents to address their child’s oral health in a number of areas:
- Proper use of fluoride
- Management of oral habits such as finger and thumb sucking
- Teething
- The connection between diet and oral health
- How to care for an infant’s or toddler’s dental health
Why Should Kids See the Dentist at Age 4?
Age 4 represents a critical age for a child to correct bad oral habits such as sucking or chewing on fingers and thumbs. And with an age 4 dental visit, dentists can reinforce strategies to help a child overcome these bad habits quickly and effectively.
An age 4 dental visit also enables parents to find out if their children are getting enough fluoride, which develops healthy teeth and prevents early tooth decay. With the proper amount of fluoride, children can reverse low levels of tooth decay and keep new cavities from forming.
Why Should Kids See the Dentist at Age 7?
By age 7, a child’s first molars erupt, resulting in a back bite. This enables dentists to properly evaluate the front-to-back and side-to-side relationships between a child’s teeth and detect future dental problems.
Age 7 also offers a great time to introduce orthodontics, which plays a crucial role in a child’s oral health. By seeing an orthodontist at age 7, a child may be able to reduce the risk of tooth trauma as well as the need to extract permanent teeth in the future.
