ABOUT BABY TEETH - Dentistry

ABOUT BABY TEETH 

Nature provides two sets of teeth in a lifetime: the 20 deciduous (baby) teeth, and the 32 permanent (second) teeth. This is no extravagance, for the jaws of an infant are hardly large enough to accommodate the teeth needed later. Make no mistake about the importance of proper care of the first teeth. Even though they are to be replaced, if they become badly diseased and fall out, the permanent teeth may not come into place properly.

A child's first set of teeth begins to form before birth, and their proper formation and structure are influenced by the diet of the mother. She need follow no special diet for her baby to have good teeth; the balanced, nutritious diet prescribed by her physician for her general health will provide for good teeth in her child. Usually, by the age of two and a half years, the child's complete set of baby teeth will have erupted. Shedding will usually begin when the child is six or seven years old. At that age, the first permanent teeth, the first molars, also appear. 

 Proper nourishment is required for healthy development of both the first and second teeth; important, too, are cleanliness and dental super- vision and, when necessary, dental treatment. 

PICKING THE PREVENTIVE DENTIST

 As we have indicated, dentistry today is in a new era-of prevention rather than mere mechanical repair. As in medicine, there are tremendous differences among men in the dental profession. They differ in personality, and your family needs a dentist whose personality is attractive to you and with whom you feel compatible.

You need a skilled dentist, of course. But you also need one, in our opinion, whose interests are along the lines of prevention rather than merely of good treatment. There are still some otherwise excellent dentists-men capable of remarkable repair work-who have not quite caught up with the modern trend of dentistry. But increasingly there are men dedicated to the idea that total mouth care is vital, that what has to be corrected must be corrected and, going beyond, patients must be helped to avoid need for correction. 

There may well be such a man available to you even if you live in a small community. Your family doctor or your pediatrician will help you find him. It is important in terms of dental health-and, in the end, it is economic in terms of family budget-to make regular visits to a dentist practicing prevention.

And it is important to introduce your child to him at an early age, even as young as two years. 

At that point, he can check the child's dental development; he can, if necessary, make corrections to prevent trouble; he can provide detailed instructions for you in the care of the child's mouth and in how to introduce the child gradually to caring properly for his mouth. Chances are that no treatment will be needed and the child's first-and very important-experience with the dentist will be a pleasant one, which will stand him in good stead all his life.