Ask the Dentist

Today we are introducing a new feature called Ask the Dentist.  Here, you are give an opportunity to ask any questions that you may have about your own dental health, the dental health of your children or any concerns you may have regarding your oral health.  You can submit your questions to me via email or you can post your questions in the comment area.

Our first questions comes from Susan in Mt. Prospect who asks:

“I have a four year old son.  He already has a couple of friends that are his age that have lost a tooth.  Isn’t that early? When can I expect my son to start to lose his baby teeth? “

Susan, first of all, thank you for the question.  As parents, we worry about the health, both dental and general, of our children.  We are often inundated with all kinds of information, both true and not so true,  from well meaning friends and relatives and, as a result, it is difficult to know what is fact and what is fiction.  Here’s the good news.  When it comes to losing baby teeth, rarely is there a wrong age for it to happen.  As you have seen, children can, on occasion, start to lose their baby teeth as early as four years old.  On the opposite end of the age spectrum, they can also not start to lose their baby teeth until as late as seven years of age.  If a child has not lost a baby tooth by the time she or he is seven years old, it is sometimes valuable to talk to your dentist about your concern.  Your dentist may suggest an x-ray which will help to provide answers.

This is a good time for me to encourage all parents to make sure that they are teaching their child(ren) good habits by having them see the dentist on a regular basis.  It is really important for children to start  seeing a dentist by the time that they have their primary (baby) teeth. The dentist will work closely with the parent on how to properly clean the newly erupting teeth, answer questions regarding the range of ages for teeth to come in and for baby teeth to fall out, important nutritional and bottle feeding advice and many other issues that arise with the dental needs of young children.

It is so helpful to establish a relationship with your dentist when you are raising your children. That way, you and your children will feel comfortable in approaching your dentist with concerns, questions and treatments.

I hope that this has answered your question Susan.  I am really excited about starting this new feature, Ask the Dentist. If you have any question at all regarding your oral health, please email me or post the question in the comments and I will address it on another post!

Looking forward to hearing from you and, remember, as always….we LOVE making you smile!