By Sherwood Park Dental

When to Visit a Pediatric Dentist?

Visiting a pediatric dentist for your little one’s oral health is just as important as taking him to a general pediatrician for regular dental checkups. If it’s your first time parenting, deciding the right time to visit a pediatric dentist can be difficult. It becomes more important when your toddler has sprouted their first milky tooth.

By this time, your toddler is almost one year old, and it is also the perfect time to schedule an appointment with a pediatric dentist. So let’s simplify it more. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents take their children to a pediatric dentist as soon as the first tooth appears.

While this sounds too early to many, there are logical reasons why early is better when it comes to Pediatric Dentist than visiting a pediatric dentist for kids/children. Let’s look at some of them.

Why Should You Visit A Pediatric Dentist In The First Place?

1. Treat Oral Health Problems

As your infant gets his first tooth, he’s possibly at a higher risk of a number of oral health problems. From teeth whitening to ulcers, lesions, or white spots on the teeth, a professional dentist can save your infant from all future oral health problems. They use special dental cleaning strategies to protect the under-growing teeth, such as brushing, flossing, and other painless methods.

2. Teach Oral Health Habits

Whether your toddler is a thumb-sucker or has a habit of putting everything in their mouth, oral teaching habits are very important at this stage. As new teeth are weak, the dentist provides tooth-friendly tools that will keep your little one from chewing anything on the ground.

3. Suggest The Right Diet

What and how you feed your baby also determines the health of its growing teeth. Therefore, the pediatric dentist discusses the right type of food to feed to your baby that doesn’t pose any harm to your child’s oral health. Some pediatric dentists also suggest avoiding baby bottles and hard cups when feeding baby food. As an alternative, you can use clean and new spoons made of soft plastic that doesn’t hurt the soft gums of your baby. Often, the pediatric dentist also increases the baby’s fluoride intake as it offers stability to the form structure and base of the young tooth.

What questions does a pediatric dentist ask during the first visit?

While each pediatric dentist has a different approach to interacting with the children, there are some common questions that they all ask. Almost all questions relate to the patient’s oral care, diet, oral habits, and behavior.

What Happens During The First Visit To A Pediatric Dentist?

Usually, the dentist first takes a comprehensive tour of the child’s oral health, such as counting teeth, examining lips, tongue, and checking if there’s bleeding between the gums. After reviewing everything, most dentists have one-on-one conversations with parents, advising tips to care for the new tooth and asking about the child’s behavior.

Some of them also introduce helpful tooth-friendly tools so your baby doesn’t suck the nipple that could possibly hurt the teeth. Lastly, you can also share your related concerns and ask for suggestions if there’s something different about your child’s oral health.

Can My Child Get Dental Insurance On My First Visit To A Pediatric Dentist?

Like you, your little one is also going to need regular dental checkups with time for good oral health and a bright smile. To make sure you don’t have to break the bank for this, it’s important and wise to get your child’s early dental insurance done before it gets too late. On your first visit to a pediatric dentist, choose the most suitable dental plan and stick with it when applying for dental insurance. Not only will you save money, but you’ll also be able to secure your child’s oral health.

How to make my child’s first dentist visit easy?

Making your child’s first visit to a pediatric dentist can be a bit scary, especially if your child isn’t used to being in a closed room. That’s why it’s so important to listen to other experienced parents and read a few tips to make your child’s first visit easy and enjoyable.

1. Make your child familiar with the dentist.

Before the appointment, familiarize your child with the profession of the dentist and what their job is. You can do this by making them read dentist books or show movies with dentist characters.

2. Make them feel comfortable

You need to make your kid comfortable at the clinic in the first place so they don’t make a fuss there. For this reason, you can bring their toys, make them wear comfortable clothes, and bring them with a filled tummy.

3. Cheer your kiddo

Children love it when you cheer them up. This is the exact thing you need to do when taking them to the dentist. Cheer your child throughout the way you take them to the dentist and bring them back home.

Conclusion

Without a second thought, taking your infant to a pediatric dentist is one of the many important things you do for their overall health care. From cavity to teeth whitening, they can help you in every case as you make regular dental checkups every 6 months. To learn more about the pediatric dentist in Sherwood Park, contact Sherwood Park Dental to book an appointment. Our dentists are ready to help you with your oral care needs.