Importance of Baby Teeth

Importance of Baby Teeth

Most of the time people think that baby teeth don’t hold much importance as they are going to fall out anyway.
Here are some reasons why baby teeth should be taken care of:

1. Speech – Just like adult teeth primary teeth also help the child to develop proper speech.
2. Eating and nutrition – Though this is a very obvious one but it is very important that the child can chew properly to get as much nutritional benefits from the food as possible. The worse thing is if a child has severely decayed teeth that prevent him to chew properly resulting in nutritional deficiencies, malnourishment and being underweight.
3. Self-confidence – No one can deny that a beautiful smile adds to anyone’s self-confidence. Unfortunately, when kids loose their teeth untimely due to decay or an accident it does bring their confidence level down.
4. Maintaining space – Baby teeth play a vital role in maintaining space for permanent teeth before their eruption. Early loss of primary teeth can lead to crooked or crowded teeth.

Taking care of baby teeth –

1. Even before the first teeth erupt the gums should be cleaned using damp soft wash cloth.
2. After eruption of baby teeth a small soft kid’s toothbrush should be used.
3. A small pea sized amount of kid’s toothpaste should be used up to 6 years of age.
4. From 6 years on wards adult toothpaste with fluoride can be started but still monitoring the amount of toothpaste used (pea-sized amount). Toothpaste should be kept out of reach of children.
5. Supervising the brushing till the kids are about 8 years of age.
6. Brushing 2 times a day
7. Diet plays a big role as well to avoid decay in teeth – All sugary foods and drinks including chocolate and candies should be limited altogether. Whenever giving treats try and give straight after the meal rather than snacking throughout the day. Rinsing with water straight after is a good idea.