When Should I Take My Child to the Dentist for the First Time?

If you're wondering when your child's first dentist visit should be, it may be earlier than you realize. For those who are asking, "When should I take my child to the dentist for the first time?" the answer is the sooner, the better. Most dentists agree that a child's first dentist visit should be about a year old. It's also a good idea to have them visit six months after their first tooth emerges.

There are many benefits to visiting the dentist's office early in your child's life. Here is why it is so important.

Start Good Dental Habits Early in Life

Some parents make the mistake of waiting to take their child to the dentist after their baby teeth have fallen out. This is a mistake because it leads to bad habits. Your baby's teeth can still rot when they're just baby teeth. This can cause them a lot of discomfort and pain.

It can also make things like learning how to chew even more difficult for them. They won't want to apply pressure on their teeth and gums if they hurt.

Another consequence of not taking care of your baby's teeth when they're young is rotten gums. Just like adult teeth and gums, the mouth has bad and good bacteria inside of it. The bad bacteria accumulate and can start to make their gums rot. This rot doesn't go away just because they lose their baby teeth either.

Instead, the rot can infect the new teeth as well. Your child may experience cavities as soon as they come into place. They may also develop gingivitis early in life. This is why it's important to visit a pediatric dentist shortly after they first start to teeth.

Why Primary Teeth Matter

Your child's primary teeth matter for numerous reasons. One of the most important is that it helps them learn how to chew and to develop speech. As humans, we rely on our teeth to make certain sounds and words. If your baby's teeth fall out or become rotten and thus deformed, they may not be able to pronounce certain words. This could negatively affect their ability to speak.

In terms of chewing, they may not be able to receive the proper nutrition they need because they cannot chew certain foods.

Another reason that primary teeth are important is that they hold a permanent space for adult teeth. If the teeth fall out, space can become closed up due to the pressure of the teeth next to the area. If there is an open space, then the mouth rearranges itself to close those gaps when it can.

As a result, when your child starts to grow their adult teeth, they may come in crooked. Some may even overlap. This can cause your child a lot of discomforts as they're growing.

Normalizing Dentist Visits

You should take your children to the dentist early in life because it normalizes the visits. A lot of children, even adults, are anxious about dentist visits. Sometimes this is just because they didn't visit the dentist's office frequently when they were younger.

You can make visiting the dentist an easy process by introducing your child to the office early. If going to the dentist is a common practice for them, they won't develop anxiety about visiting the office. This can also help entrench good oral habits that can last the rest of their life.

Schedule Today

You should schedule an appointment with a pediatric dentist when they're one year old or six months after their first tooth has emerged. Doing so can positively affect their oral health. Contact Lovett Dental at 832-804-7427 to schedule an appointment today.