Dental Sealants: Safeguarding Your Kids Teeth
Your kids develop molars at ages 6, 12, and 18. The molars in the posterior region of the mouth have pits and grooves, making them challenging to clean even if your kid has excellent dental hygiene habits. Food particles and bacteria can remain trapped in the furrows where toothbrush bristles cannot reach. The bacteria in your kid’s mouth undoubtedly creates cavities in their back teeth.
The pediatric dentist in Phoenix, AZ, recommends safeguarding your kid’s molars by sealing their teeth using dental sealants. If you don’t understand what dental sealants are, these are thin protective coatings applied on the chewing surfaces of the molars to prevent tooth decay.
Aren’t Brushing and Flossing Sufficient to Prevent Tooth Decay?
Brushing and flossing are undoubtedly optimal to prevent tooth decay, so are avoiding sticky and chewy foods and sugary foods and beverages. However, you find it challenging to watch your kid throughout the day when they can sneak out to have the foods described and leave them on their teeth for extended periods.
The challenges children encounter when brushing their molars, coupled with the harmful foods and beverages they have, create a fertile breeding ground for bacteria when the foods remain trapped in their molars for extended periods. The optimal safeguard in such situations is to safeguard their teeth by providing them dental sealants to create a smoother surface where food particles don’t remain trapped and make it easier for cleaning.
The kid’s dentist in Phoenix, AZ, recommends sealing the first and second permanent molars appearing between age six and 12. Baby teeth don’t usually require sealants. However, the dentist might recommend sealing baby molars with deep grooves to prevent the risk of tooth decay. Therefore while brushing and flossing remain the best techniques for preventing tooth decay having an additional barrier over children’s teeth helps safeguard their oral health by preventing cavities.
Aren’t Sealants Expensive?
Dental sealants are much more affordable than getting dental treatments for sensitive teeth with permanent damage from holes created by mouth bacteria. The procedure for getting dental sealants is painless and costs merely $ 30-$ 60 per tooth, although insurance plans can reduce the costs further.
Dental sealants safeguard your kid’s teeth against 80 percent of tooth decay for a couple of years after an application. The protection continues against 50 percent of holes for another four years while the sealants remain on the kid’s teeth for up to nine years. In the US, approximately 43 percent of children between six and 11 have dental sealants, and children from low-income households are 20 percent less likely to have them on their teeth. Unfortunately, children without sealants develop almost three times more problems with their teeth than children with them.
Getting your kids an application of dental sealants doesn’t allow them to neglect dental hygiene or forgo six-monthly dental appointments because the sealants need monitoring to ensure they do not wear off.
Dental sealants are an additional safeguard against tooth decay for your kid who might otherwise need expensive dental treatments because they neglect their dental hygiene. Therefore the cost of dental sealants becomes undoubtedly affordable than getting dental treatments.
The Dental Sealant Application Procedure
The dental sealant application procedure is quick and painless. First, your kid’s tooth is cleaned to ensure all food particles and bacteria are eliminated from the grooves. Next, the dentist places a special gel on the chewing surfaces for a few seconds and rinses it off with water. After drying the tooth with absorbent material, it is painted a layer of liquid dental sealant and hardened with a special light. The dentist completes the procedure in a few minutes.
What after Getting Dental Sealants?
Dental sealants are tooth-colored or slightly tinted and are not visible when your child speaks or smiles. Your kid’s bite might feel different after dental sealant placement, depending on the material used. However, it is expected, and the bite adjusts in a few days. Your child can have food and beverages immediately after dental sealant placement because no special precautions are involved.
Getting a safeguard for your kid’s teeth with dental sealants is a better solution than allowing them to develop tooth decay that needs expensive treatments from dentists frequently. In reality, sealants help your kid’s teeth and overall health by ensuring they don’t have to report lost school time or discomfort from toothaches and other issues.
If you are convinced dental sealants are appropriate for your kid’s please schedule an appointment with Desert Ridge Pediatric Dentistry to get this excellent protective barrier on their molars.