Are you curious about getting some cosmetic dental work done for your child? If you think your child might be a good candidate to have some type of cosmetic dentistry treatment, then keep reading to learn more about what is available for pediatric dental patients.
What is Cosmetic Dentistry?
The words “cosmetic dentistry” sound like a serious undertaking, and in some cases that is the truth. However, the term cosmetic dentistry really applies to any dental work invasive or non-invasive that serves the purpose of enhancing or improving the appearance of your toothy smile.
Odds are good that at some point you’ve had some cosmetic dentistry performed and just didn’t realize it could be classified as such.
Is Cosmetic Dentistry Appropriate for Children?
This question requires a more nuanced answer than the previous one. Some methods of cosmetic dentistry can be appropriate for children, in certain circumstances. Let’s explore that a little more.
6 Types of Cosmetic Dental Treatments Available for Kids
1. Composite/resin fillings are a common cosmetic dental procedure for kids. They serve the important and necessary purpose of repairing a tooth that has a cavity or tooth decay, but the cosmetic part comes into play when we use our composite resin to do the job instead of the formerly more traditional amalgam. When amalgam is used, there is a visible metallic look to the tooth. Our composite resin fillings are a blend of silica and plastics which are almost clear of any color, allowing them to be tinted to match the color of the repaired tooth.
2. Porcelain crowns are the cosmetic alternative to stainless steel crowns and can be appropriate for kids. A crown is used when the tooth in question is badly damaged or decayed to the point that a filling is not sufficient. The crown is created in a lab and then when ready, placed over the tooth covering it entirely. We often recommend porcelain crowns for teeth that are readily visible, hence the cosmetic aspect. If the tooth in question that requires a crown is a baby tooth and not a permanent one, then we discuss with parents and the child factors to take into consideration, including cost and time frame for when the baby tooth can be expected to fall out.
3. Direct bonding is a cosmetic dentistry procedure that is minimally invasive and serves a purely cosmetic purpose. Discoloration, stains, chips, or gaps can be covered by using a composite resin (much like what is used for fillings). This type of cosmetic procedure may be appropriate for adolescents with permanent teeth.
4. Teeth whitening is another purely cosmetic procedure. Teenagers are as prone to be concerned with the state of their smile as an adult. Perhaps even more so because the adolescent time of life is so fraught with big body changes and confusing social dynamics. While adults often experience discoloration on their teeth due to aging, the discoloration present in the smiles of teenagers is typically a result of the assault of acids and sugars from popular and often over-consumed beverages such as sodas, juices, and energy drinks.
5. Dental flipper is a cosmetic option utilized when trauma has caused the loss of a tooth. Think of it as a partial denture, or a retainer that has a prosthetic tooth/teeth attached to it. It serves the cosmetic purpose of maintaining the appearance of a tooth and a full smile. A dental flipper is only recommended for kids when the missing tooth is a permanent one. To be clear, once a permanent tooth is lost a person can consider dental implants. However, dental implants are not recommended for anyone under the age of 18 and are an invasive dental procedure. The dental flipper is an appropriate alternative for teens in this situation.
6. No-prep veneers are also sometimes referred to as minimal prep veneers and, as the name implies, are much less invasive than their porcelain veneer counterparts. Porcelain veneers are not recommended for teens because while they likely have all their permanent teeth in, their teeth certainly haven’t finished developing. Porcelain veneers often involve grinding on the tooth’s enamel to ensure adhesion. During a permanent tooth’s development, the nerve of the tooth’s pulp is closer to the surface because the dentin layer isn’t fully formed which places it at a higher risk of nerve damage. No-prep veneers will cover the front of the tooth only and require no anesthesia for the process.
Cosmetic Dentistry Doesn’t Discount Good Dental Hygiene
The truth of the matter is that while cosmetic dentistry can give your kid a perfect white smile, only good dental hygiene can keep it that way. The costs associated with the aforementioned cosmetic dentistry options available to teens and kids may very well be prohibitive. The best thing you and your kids can do so that they have that healthy shining smile is to brush and floss twice a day, for two minutes.
If your child has had crowns or fillings it definitely means that your child has already had some experience with tooth decay which isn’t great but isn’t abnormal either. That provides you with an opportunity to connect that your family needs to focus on dental hygiene routines, and perhaps examine the consumption of snacks and beverages.
The other procedures that are purely cosmetic need to be treated with caution. It can be easy to believe that because the stains on the teeth can be covered or whitened that less diligence in dental care is required. Don’t start down that slippery slope!
If you believe that your child may need/want some cosmetic dentistry, then give us a call to come in for a checkup. You can share your concerns and interests and we can review options and factors to take into consideration. Each child’s smile is unique, as is each situation.
Are you thinking about buying an electric toothbrush for your kid? It’s a good idea, but before you go out and buy it, inform yourself. You want to know what the best electric toothbrush for kids is, and we’ll get to that. But first, arm yourself with knowledge. Here we’ll tell you everything you want to know about electric toothbrushes and more!
A Little History of the Electric Toothbrush
Electric toothbrushes really became popular in mainstream society in the early 2000s. However, it might surprise you to know that portable electric toothbrushes have been on the market since the 1960s. As you can imagine, the first electric toothbrushes weren’t as easy to use or as slim in design. All in all, the electric toothbrush has come a long way in the last 60 years.
Why Should You Consider Buying an Electric Toothbrush for Your Kids?
As pediatric dentists, we put a lot of effort into educating the kids that come into our clinic for dental services. Dental health is an important part of maintaining your overall physical health and we all know that having dental problems can be painful. Often it turns out kids just aren’t that great at brushing their teeth.
Some of that is due to limitations in dexterity. Consider yourself and how every time you go in for a cleaning, your dental hygienist remarks that there’s a certain corner in your mouth that it seems you routinely miss. Our teeth are groovy and fit inside a relatively small space, i.e. your mouth. Being able to reach all those spots where food and plaque can hide can be tricky despite your kids’ best efforts.
Electric toothbrushes will help your kids reach areas in their mouth that they might not otherwise reach or will brush in those spaces that otherwise they can only reach but don’t have the dexterity to do any brushing.
Quip Kids Electric Toothbrush
There are several electric toothbrushes in the aisles in stores with their bright colors, songs, and accessories. It can seem overwhelming when trying to decide which to buy. You may be looking for the best electric toothbrush for braces or the best travel electric toothbrush but what we recommend you look for is the seal of approval by the American Dental Association (ADA). Only one electric toothbrush for kids on today’s market has earned the ADA seal of approval and that’s the quip Kids Electric Toothbrush. Read more about the quip Kids Electric Toothbrush and its product functions on the ADA product description page here.
Advantages of an Electric Toothbrush
Special – Electric toothbrushes could make the tooth brushing routine more interesting for your kid because it is something special. Maybe mommy and daddy have electric toothbrushes, and now so do they!
Fun – Keep in mind that part of instilling dental care habits is making it fun, not a chore. Electric toothbrushes can feel kind of tickly to some kids which can make brushing teeth more fun. If mommy and daddy like brushing their teeth and the kids know this, they are more likely to adopt that same positive attitude about it.
Grip – The quip electric toothbrush for kids that we recommend has a rubber grip to help with slipping and comes in different colors. Get your kid excited about it and have them choose which color they want.
Two-Minute Timer – The quip will time your kids brushing and make pulsing alerts for every 30 seconds until the two minutes is up.
Disadvantages of an Electric Toothbrush
Every kid is different, and you will find that saying is just as true when it comes to toothbrushes. While some kids may find an electric toothbrush fun and tickly, other kids may not.
Noise Sensitivity – Some electric toothbrushes make noise while turned on. This can be irritating or frightening for some kids.
Sensory Issues – Most electric toothbrushes do a pulsing when the two-minute time for brushing is up, others do it also at intervals.
Sensitive Gag Reflex – The electric toothbrush will typically allow the brusher to better reach those back teeth, but this can be tricky for kids with sensitive gag reflexes.
Is it a Must?
No. An electric toothbrush for your kid is not a “must”. Our goal is for kids to have the daily habit of brushing their teeth twice a day for two minutes and flossing at least once a day. We don’t really have a preference if it’s with an electric toothbrush or a regular toothbrush.
Take a minute and really think about the advantages and disadvantages to electric toothbrushes, and then consider your kid. You know them best, is an electric toothbrush something they will get excited about? Is it something that may put them off brushing their teeth? Maybe you parents need to lay a foundation for them by being visible to your kids when you brush your teeth, doing it happily, and routinely. Once the foundation is laid maybe an electric toothbrush would be a good idea. Or maybe you’ll find that once you’ve laid a solid foundation by example, your kids will just get better about brushing with their regular toothbrush.
If after reading, you still aren’t sure what to do. Put it on hold and talk with us about it for your kids’ next dental visit. If you haven’t been with us before, but have been looking for pediatric dentists in Utah, give us a call! We have four locations spread out in the greater Salt Lake City area, all conveniently located and would love to see you. Check out our locations page to find our office nearest you and give us a call to schedule your visit.
What does it mean to be a mouth breather exactly? We’ve all had occasion to breathe through our mouths instead of our noses. Any time we are ill and have congestion in our nasal passages, opening our mouths to continue the necessary body function of breathing is natural, automatic, and often unconsciously done.
Mouth breathing in children has been linked to various issues with jaw formation and tooth decay. Studies have shown that excessive mouth breathing can have a negative impact on your physical and oral health.
Facial Development and Growth – In September of 2010, a study was published in the medical journal the Laryngoscope that studied the dental and craniofacial development in children both mouth breathers, and nasal breathers. The findings were convincing that mouth breathing has a negative impact on children’s growth development.
In their conclusions they stated clearly:
“Naso‐respiratory obstruction with mouth breathing during critical growth periods in children has a higher tendency for clockwise rotation of the growing mandible, with a disproportionate increase in anterior lower vertical face height and decreased posterior facial height.”
Dry Mouth – Other studies have linked mouth breathing to halitosis in children which indeed makes sense from a logical perspective. Dry mouth is a problem that not only can cause halitosis but affects your saliva production. As we’ve discussed before, saliva is a powerhouse defensive line in your mouth to fight the plaque and bacteria that settle in and around the grooves of your teeth and gum line. Not having enough saliva production weakens that defense and therefore can lead to increased risk of tooth decay, gingivitis, and halitosis.
Visible Physical Character Traits – This study found that children who were mouth breathers exhibited physical characteristics such as, “elongated face, dropped eyes, dark spots underneath the eyes, narrow nostrils, inadequate lip sealing, dry and hypotonic lips, narrow upper lip (thin), anterior open bite and high palate.”
Is My Child a Mouth Breather?
If you watch your child throughout the day, take a note of whether they breathe through their mouth or their nose. Illnesses aside, they should be breathing through their noses most of the time.
Does your child snore? Snoring is an indication that your child is breathing through their mouth while sleeping. Occasional snoring may not seem like a big deal, but excessive snoring can impact the quality of sleep your child is able to experience and can cause fatigue and drowsiness during the day when they want to be alert and active.
Does your child have bad breath? Bad breath can also be an indication of mouth breathing.
Advantages of Breathing Through the Nose
There are numerous definitive advantages to breathing through the nose. Let’s look at some of them:
Breathing through your nose has the benefit that when the air passes through your nose it is warmed and moistened.
Your nose has hairs and mucous that help filter the air you breathe.
Your nasal sinuses have the enzymes that create nitric oxide gas which mixes with the air you breathe and increases the capacity your lungs have for absorbing oxygen.
Allows correct positioning of the tongue which helps the proper natural formation of your dental arches and teeth.
There are even more benefits to nasal breathing! To learn about these benefits more in depth, and learn about others not listed here, you can read a clinical review by following this link.
How Can I Help My Child (or Myself) Stop Mouth Breathing?
If you’ve identified your child or yourself as a mouth breather, there are some things you can do to work to change the habit and convert yourselves to nasal breathers.
Be Conscious – Being aware of it, is a very good start. When you realize that you are breathing with your mouth open, close it! Consciously close your mouth and begin breathing through your nose. Take a few conscious breaths through your nose before going back to what you were doing. Be light and almost playful when you point this out to your child. By drawing their attention to it, you can practice some breaths through the nose together and then move along. You may even find that they will point out when they catch you breathing with your mouth open!
Clear the Nose – Is your child breathing through their mouth because they are congested? If your child is congested, try utilizing a vapor rub on their chest, having them blow their nose (if old enough) or using a nasal aspirator to clear the blockage.
Replace Air Filters – Most heating and cooling systems in your house use filters. Make sure that you are replacing those filters as recommended by the manufacturers. This will help with allergens in the air of your home which can contribute to nasal congestion.
Have Fun with Scents – Have fun with scents in your home. Draw your child’s attention to the smell of a food, a scented candle or wax, or an air diffuser. Having them pay attention to smells will have them using their noses, and that encourages breathing through the nose.
Yoga Exercises – Yoga exercises targeted for varying ages and levels of ability can be easily found on the internet. Yoga can be helpful because breathing is an important part of the poses and is done through the nose. The added benefit of relieving stress or tension is nice too!
Utah Pediatric Dentists
As always, we encourage you to instill habits of brushing teeth twice daily for two minutes and once a day flossing in your children. These dental hygiene routines are a huge piece of the prevention pie. If it’s been six months or longer since your child had a dental cleaning, give us a call to schedule a visit. We have offices in four locations. Choose the one nearest you and we will see you soon!
Is it magic? It might as well be sometimes. If you’re a parent, despairing at the eating habits of your kids, know that you are not alone!
Getting kids to eat healthy is a big challenge for many parents, and despite the bounty of healthy foods available, it continues to be a concern we hear. Here’s a few tips we’ve compiled to help you create some magical that will have your kids eating healthy.
1. The Magic of Togetherness
In today’s age, we rely a lot on ready-made, or pre-prepped meals so that we can get the food on the table (or in the car) quickly. Our lives are busy, and these shortcuts or kitchen hacks or whatever you call them have made eating easier.
Thankfully there are lots of healthy options available in ready-made, and ready-prepped meals, but the magic ingredient that is missing here, is the togetherness. Try to sit down with your kids and eat together as a family. Even if it’s only for 20 minutes.
Mental and emotional associations between family, togetherness, and healthy meals can really make an impact on your kids’ eating habits. Additionally, this study found that family meals had positive long term impacts on kids’ behavior, mental and physical health, and lower levels of soft drink consumption.
2. The Magic of Preparation
When you involve your kids in the kitchen by prepping and cooking meals together; you can stimulate both their interest in new foods and their appetite. The washing of the vegetables, the cutting, the tossing, and the drizzling of your choice of salad dressing makes that bowl of salad on the table lot more interesting to you. Your mouth has been watering, your nose has been sniffing, and your mind has been imagining the way it would taste as your pearly whites crunch down. That’s the magic of preparation.
Your kids don’t have all that wind-up if they haven’t been a part of it. Get them involved in the kitchen! They may be too young to use a knife for cutting, but there’s other ways they can help. They can find ingredients in the cabinets or fridge, they can wash them, they can strain them, they can tear them, they can pour them, and they can stir them.
3. The Magic of Self Service or Buffet Style
We parents are heavily invested (emphasis on heavily) on the topic of food when it comes to our kids. Is it healthy? Did they eat enough? Did they eat too much? Do they like it? Why don’t they like it? Etc. The worries about this topic play in our brains and are endless and cyclic.
Kids recognize how much we care about this topic and can engage us in power struggles. So, try serving food buffet style or in bowls on the table to pass around. Relinquishing control over what goes on their plate and how much, can be a helpful concession to our kids. It encourages them to take some control and responsibility. Remember; you are in control of what goes on the buffet, or in the bowls. You are simply letting them control what goes on their plates and how much.
4. The Magic of Meal Planning
Do you meal plan? This magic trick is again, about stimulating interest. Get them involved in the meal planning! You set the guidelines about categories of food as you see appropriate, and they get the opportunity to exert some control (which feels good!) and by being part of the planning process, they can accept some responsibility and learn about the food groups.
5. Take Away the Magic of Desserts
This one might feel counterintuitive but trust us. Make dessert part of the meal, and control portion size. When you hold dessert hostage over vegetables, you set dessert up as being more interesting (and more important) than anything else on the table. Take away the magic of the desserts and serve them with the meal.
Yes, likely they will eat them first, because this will be a surprising change to mealtime in your house! However, the novelty of it will wear off once over time. Remember, you control what dessert is, and the portion size. The point is, they will still be hungry even if it’s the first thing they eat!
6. The Magic of the Your Example
Are you a healthy eater? Take a moment to think about your eating habits, and how they might be mirrored by your kids. If you drink a lot of soda, then it makes sense they would be interested in soda.
If you struggle with eating healthy, maybe eating healthy can be a journey for you to take with your kids. Experiment with different recipes, or sauces to find ways to eat healthier foods that you can enjoy. Set an example of tasting and trying new foods. Maybe you will find new healthier favorites together.
7. The Magic of Cooking Shows on TV
We like TV shows that teach our kids numbers, letters, singing, dancing, and about emotions and imagination; is it that much of a stretch to think TV shows can have an impact on their eating habits as well? Do you enjoy cooking shows? Do your kids ever watch them? Look for cooking shows you can watch together, preferably ones that are creating healthy dishes.
This study, performed on children (with parental consent) in the Netherlands, found that kids who watched healthy cooking shows were more likely to choose healthy snacks and foods after!
Some of these “magic tricks” require more time and investment on your part as the parent than others. You might even already be doing some of them. If you aren’t please don’t feel guilt-tripped or burdened by the thought that you must do all these things and do them every day.
Look at your week, and pick a few from this list to try out that seem practical and manageable. Feeling overwhelmed won’t help you relax about mealtime, and we want meals to be enjoyable for parents as well as kids. Eating healthy can be delicious and fun, but only if the parents can feel good about it.
It’s official, the holiday season is here! Your kids and the plaque bacterias in their mouths are ecstatic, but their teeth are quivering in fear! Don’t worry, here at South Davis Pediatric Dentistry we understand that part of the holiday cheer is the goodies, the chocolates, the candy canes, the cookies and all the other yummy things only eaten this time of year. It isn’t fair to expect you to spend the entire holiday season saying ‘no’. Instead, we’ve made a list of holiday tips for a healthy dental holiday season.
1. Brush, brush, and brush!
This is an important part of everyday life. Pack it into your morning and night routines, and don’t forget even with the holiday bustle. Brushing teeth twice a day from an early age will not only help to instill healthy dental habits but will ensure the holiday doesn’t wreak havoc on their pearly whites. On days when they’ve had a lot of sweets or something really sticky, consider doing an extra brushing after their midday meal or just right after the sweet treat. Ideally, we should all brush our teeth for two minutes at a time. This can be tricky with kids, so consider singing a song (maybe a holiday jingle for the season) while they brush to help them go the distance. When they’ve finished brushing, grab the brush and take a turn also. It can be hard for little hands to get the places in the back or up on top.
2. Floss!
The importance of floss cannot be overstated when it comes to having healthy teeth for the holidays. Those sweet foods and candies love the grooves and tight spaces between your kids’ teeth and will happily stay there despite a good brushing. Get out the floss, and consider doing a little show-and-tell for your kids so they can see what the floss is able to snag even after brushing. Sometimes seeing is believing!
3. Keep your dental appointments.
The crush of the holiday season and the places to go and the things to do can have you going all over town and out of town. You might feel pressure to cancel a holiday dental appointment. Please don’t! Regular dental checkups for your kids are important. When scheduling, consider trying to get it in before things really heat up, or try for early in the new year.
4. Surround yourself and your kids with healthy options.
We aren’t saying to avoid the candies and cookies full stop. However, when your home pantry and fridge are stocked with yummy healthy options making them more accessible; your kids will be eating better in general, at least while they’re at home. Being able to grab healthy snacks for on-the-go will also help you avoid those less healthy choices while you’re out and about that are sometimes made of desperation when you’ve got hungry kids who just can’t wait. Make those moments for the sweet treats even more special because they aren’t part of every moment of every day.
5. Give dental Christmas gifts.
Dental hygiene items will make great stocking stuffers for your kids, and even other people’s kids. Consider some fun toothbrushes of their favorite characters or colors and throw in some minty or cinnamon-flavored floss. A quick google search for floss flavors will yield other crazier flavors of floss such as: bacon, pickle, coconut, cupcake, pumpkin spice and so much more. Older kids might even get a kick out of an electric toothbrush. Promoting dental health can be seasonal too!
6. Drink water with fluoride.
Drink lots of water this holiday season, not only is it important to stay hydrated, but the fluoride in water will help your teeth fight against tooth decay. Try to stay away from sodas and juices when your kids are eating sweets and counteract their harmful effects on teeth by serving water to help wash away the sugars and acids.
7. Look for ways to make favorite holiday treats a bit healthier.
Can those holiday pastries or cookies be made with whole wheat flour instead of white flour? Can that cup of hot cocoa be made with milk, cocoa powder and just a bit of sugar instead of pouring in a pre-made packet or a couple spoon-fulls of chocolate syrup? The internet is your friend when it comes to altering recipes to healthier options or sugar substitutes. Take a look and see if you can find something that you can still feel good about while also pleasing the kids’ holiday expectations.
“Saliva contains important elements such as bicarbonate, calcium, and phosphate. They not only neutralize plaque acids, but also help repair early tooth damage and decay.” That is a pretty great natural defense your body has. Eating those sweet treats during or right after mealtime when your saliva production is at its highest will ensure your body’s best defender is in the game when it counts the most.
9. Get off the non-stop sweet train.
Grazing on sweet treats all day long may be a savory delicious habit during the holidays, but the non-stop assault on your teeth can be incredibly damaging. Try to keep the sweet intake to one sitting, and then wash it down with water if brushing isn’t a practical option at that point in the day.
Giving your kids information about why it’s important to take care of their teeth instead of just telling them to do it can help them get on board with their oral hygiene. Also, lead by example! If you aren’t brushing your teeth twice a day, flossing once, and drinking lots of water, get started now! Help it be a happy dental Christmas and keep these nice teeth dental habits up throughout the year! On behalf of all of us here at South Davis Pediatric Dentistry, we wish you and your loved ones happy holidays!
Recent Comments