If you have been thinking about having your child get a sealant treatment, then it is an option to consider. You have done your best to introduce your child to proper oral hygiene to help them maintain strong and healthy teeth. And also to help them grow into adults who will be having little to no oral problems.
The good thing about a sealant is that they are good for your children. They are effective in kids as they act as protective guards that keep tooth cavities from forming on the teeth.
Sealants work by forming a cover over the grooves and pits. It is efficient for both children with baby teeth and those who are already growing permanent teeth to have a dental sealant over their teeth. If you are still concerned about the right time your child can get dental sealants, then this post will be helpful.
When Should Your Child Be Given Dental Sealants Treatment?
The best time or the most common age a child should be given dental sealant application is between the age of 6 and 14. This is not to be taken that dental sealant application must be done on all kids.
Some children may not need to be given dental sealants at the age of 6. Generally, dental sealants are effective on permanent teeth. Therefore, around age 6, children can already start losing their baby teeth and get their new permanent teeth.
Applying sealants on the permanent teeth protects the teeth against cavities attack later in the future. Some children may not lose their baby teeth at age 6.
This is to say the day that children of this category, especially those who are yet to lose their molars, will have to hold on until their permanent teething has further developed before they can be given sealant application.
Some children who have not been properly guided on healthy habits of daily brushing can have early tooth problems. Even if the child is below 6 years old, he or she can easily develop tooth decay.
In this kind of case where the kids are too young, but they really need sealants because of their susceptibility to cavities, or they are already forming grooves over their baby molars, dental sealants can be applied over their baby teeth in the affected area.
This action will prevent them from losing their baby teeth in their premature form. This will also help in reducing aggravation of potential cavities, which can be a more painful experience for the child to face as he or she gets older.
Although it is right to have your youngsters apply dental sealants, it is almost very important to teach them good oral care practice along with it. This does not only solve present problems but also provides lifelong protection to their teeth as they get older.
Be proactive in showing the children the right approach to daily brushing and flossing. First, act by example by maintaining good oral practice. Indeed, your children will look up to you, and it is your duty not to disappoint them. If you are dedicated to daily brushing and flossing, so will they.
Even if you have a child who is dedicated to brushing and flossing, it is possible for that child to still encounter tooth cavities later in life. Therefore, as parents, you must supervise every brushing activity until the child can do it right by himself or herself.
Sometimes, the children cannot reach all the areas while brushing. When this happens, they are likely to have tooth decay, and this is when the dental sealant is applied to protect them from premature loss of their baby teeth.
For your child to wait patiently till age 7 to 14 to get dental sealants on their permanent adult teeth, they have to maintain good dental hygiene. You, as the parent, must fully keep assisting and supporting them till they successfully lose all their baby teeth.
Before you book a dental appointment with experts from Pediatric Dentistry of Weston, you must first know what dental sealants are, and how efficient they can be. Usually, during a sealant treatment, plastic material is used to cover over the chewing surface of the teeth or the molar.
Naturally, the molar has cracks, pits, and openings where food particles are collected, and this causes tooth decay if those substances are left in the same area for too long. They accumulate to stubborn tartars, and it will not be too long before tooth decay sets in.
Instead of waiting for food particles to get collected in the openings and pits to form the cavity, sealants can be used to cover the surface of the tooth. A child who has applied sealants will have his or her teeth protected in the early years.
Since children take a longer time to develop a good oral habit, giving them protective dental sealants will enable them to have chewing areas free from cavities. This treatment becomes helpful in the future.
Therefore, now that you have understood that your young teenagers and children can quickly form grooves and crevices in their newly obtained permanent teeth and it can cause them an aggravating stage of tooth decay. They are the ones who need to be given dental sealants.
It is not only children that need dental sealant application; some teenagers can also find it helpful to get this protective application. Teenagers who do not have decay or fillings in their mouths are good candidates for dental sealant.
Conclusion
The right process and time of using dental sealant according to dental experts are to have it placed over the teeth of your youngsters, who are between the ages of 6 and 14.
Also, children who have potential tooth cavities signs like deep grooves even though they have not lost their baby teeth can be given dental sealant application to protect their teeth from future harm.
Since the temporary teeth hold the permanent teeth replacement space, it is right to guide your child on proper dental habits as this will keep them cavity-free while they patiently wait to have sealants covered over their molars.