Press Release

Release Date: June 9, 2010
HRCHC Contact: Communications Department
Telephone: (207) 861-3466
Email: Communications@HealthReach.org

Oh Baby, Baby! Caring for Your Baby's Baby Teeth

Sponsored by Deirdre Vander Schaaf, FNP
Sheepscot Valley Health Center, Coopers Mills, ME

Why keeping your baby’s mouth clean is important:

“Baby teeth don’t matter—they just fall out anyway, right?” Wrong!  As cute as kids look when they are missing a front tooth, missing teeth later in life just doesn’t look so great. Those later problems can be worse if baby teeth are not taken care of. 

Dental Caries (also called cavities and tooth decay): Bacteria invade the teeth!
When bacteria hang out in the mouth, especially along with leftover sugar and carbohydrates from the last meal, acid forms that makes holes (cavities!) in the enamel, or hard part of the tooth.  Bacteria then enter these holes and burrow further and further, potentially reaching the living tissue of a tooth, resulting in a toothache. This process is painful and unpleasant for adults, and awful for small children.  

How to take care of your baby’s mouth right from the beginning:

• Take care of your own teeth and be aware of what you put in your baby’s mouth.
• Do not share spoons or toothbrushes as bacteria can be passed from caretaker to child.
• Have your doctor or dentist check your child’s teeth by the age of one.
• Clean your baby’s mouth with a wet cloth; use a soft toothbrush as soon as the baby has teeth
• Check your baby’s teeth monthly for white or brown spots and tell your provider if the spots do not disappear.
• Limit sugar because bacteria that cause decay feed on sugar.
• Ask your baby’s dentist or doctor about fluoride treatments as fluoride makes teeth stronger and fights cavities.

Thanks to Dani O’Rourke-Suchoff, HealthReach AmeriCorps member for article development.
For additional information visit:
www.fromthefirsttooth.org
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cavities/DS00896/DSECTION=causes

Sheepscot Valley Health Center is a practice of HealthReach Community Health Centers, a system of eleven federally qualified health centers in Central and Western Maine. Dedicated providers deliver first-class health care to citizens in over 80 rural communities. To ensure access for everyone, HealthReach accepts major insurances as well as Medicare and MaineCare. In addition, uninsured and underinsured patients have access to an Affordable Care Program and assistance with applications for other programs that help with health care and medication costs. A private, non-profit organization celebrating 35 years of providing health care, HealthReach is funded by patient fees, grants and individual donations.