Saturday, February 03, 2007 The tooth fairy By Janette Huang-Teves Mom About Town
AS A young child, I believed in the Tooth Fairy. Every time a baby tooth would fall out by itself or extracted by the family dentist, I remember excitedly putting it in a glass of water at night.
By morning, when I woke up, the tooth would be magically replaced by shiny P2 coins.
This went on for several times until one day, I caught my dad in the process of putting the coins. Gotcha!
I guess believing in this mythical fairy makes the process of losing a tooth more tolerable and enjoyable for children. It is a rite of passage where kids give a part of themselves that they may have otherwise grown deeply attached to in exchange for a small reward.
Nowadays, I noticed that some toddlers as early as 2 years old would already have decayed teeth. Not wanting my own kids to suffer the same fate, I visited pediatric dentist Dr. Carmen Dina "Karing" Carriedo-Obach to know more about proper dental care. She is one of the five pediatric dentists based here in Davao City.
What is a pediatric dentist?
A pediatric dentist has received additional training to provide comprehensive dental care for infants, children and adolescents ages 0-18 years old. Their practice focuses on the prevention and treatment of dental caries (tooth decay).
In addition, they are trained to deal with the behavior of even the most difficult child or children with special needs. Most often, their clinic is child-friendly with a designated play area as well as one or more assistants for faster and more efficient treatment.
Baby bottle tooth decay
Dr. Karing opened Dental Point Clinic in January 2005 after finishing her training at the Pediatric Dentistry Center in Manila. She is married to a fellow dentist, Dr. Wendell Obach, who specializes in oral surgery. Having a 10-month old son, Mateo Gabriel, makes pediatric dentistry closer to Dr. Karing's heart.
"The most common cause of tooth decay among infants and toddlers is the baby bottle tooth decay. Because parents allow their children to fall asleep with their feeding bottles, they do not have the opportunity to brush their kids' teeth or let them take water after drinking milk," shares Dr. Karing.
Ideally, babies should be weaned from the bottle by one year old. However, Dr. Karing observes that in our Filipino culture, you can still see 5-year old kids drinking their milk from the bottle.
"Effort and discipline are needed on the part of the parents to ensure that the milk will not stay in their children's mouths for the rest of the night," she emphasizes.
"I've had a patient less than 2 years old whose 4 front teeth had to be extracted because of baby bottle tooth decay," she added.
Dr. Karing explains that the milk that is left in the mouth combined with bacteria makes the teeth more vulnerable to acid attack.
Importance of baby teeth
The 30-year-old dentist discloses that there is a common perception of "Why even bother taking good care of baby teeth when they are going to fall out, anyway?"
According to Dr. Karing, baby teeth are vital for the following reasons:
1. For good nutrition
Children with healthy baby teeth can eat well, which is imperative for the child's optimal growth and development.
2. To avoid pain and infection
Decayed baby teeth can be very painful which can make eating and sleeping difficult for the child. It can likewise be a source of potential infection like meningitis, rheumatic fever and blindness.
3. To guide the permanent teeth
The position of the developing permanent teeth is directly below the baby teeth it will replace. Every time your child prematurely loses a baby tooth, the remaining teeth move in to fill the gap. This causes insufficient space making the new teeth that will come out crowded or crooked (sungki-sungki).
4. To develop correct phonetics, confidence and self-esteem
Since this is the crucial time where children learn how to talk, having healthy baby teeth help in developing correct phonetics. It also builds a child's confidence and self-esteem.
Steps to healthy baby teeth
"The right diet, correct feeding habits together with good oral hygiene and regular dental visits all contribute to the good health of baby teeth," Dr. Karing advises.
Provide your child with a well-balanced diet. Limit their consumption of snacks and sweets. The key here is the frequency and not the quantity of the food. Also, remember that the stickier the food, the more vulnerable the teeth are to acid attack.
Furthermore, stop the baby bottle habit early. Do not use the feeding bottle to put your baby to sleep.
Even if the baby's teeth have yet to come out, parents may already begin practicing their child's good oral hygiene by cleaning the mouth 2 to 3 times daily with a clean, damp washcloth or cloth diaper.
Once the teeth are present, children can use an age-specific toothbrush with the right amount of kiddie toothpaste.
The Philippine Pediatric Dental Society recommends the following amounts of toothpaste depending on one's age: 6 months to 3 years old-smear of toothpaste; 3 to 6 years old-half a pea of toothpaste; and 6 years old and above-pea size amount.
A brush-spit-no rinse is recommended to let the fluoride do its job.
Fluoride is like vitamins for the teeth, to make them stronger and more resistant to decay.
"In the United States, their water system is fluoridated that is why they do not recommend the use of too much fluoride which will result to fluorosis or defects to the enamel due to excess amounts of fluoride," Dr. Karing reveals.
In contrast, the Philippines' water is not fluoridated, except for an area in Cavite where its water system naturally contains fluoride.
She also recommends kids ages 9 months to 2 years to have a dentist apply fluoride varnish on their teeth. It will make their teeth less prone to cavities.
Visiting the dentist
Your child should generally see a dentist when he gets his first tooth, or by age one at the latest -- "First visit by first birthday" is a good rule of thumb, according to both the American Dental Association and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry.
A dental visit at an early age is similar to a well-baby check-up at your pediatrician. If you bring your child to the dentist when he is already in pain, this may make him afraid of the dentist and of the dental procedures.
On the first visit, your dentist will check your child's oral development, see if any problems are present, and demonstrate how to clean his teeth properly.
Aside from fluoride varnish, preventive measures such as sealants may be suggested. Sealants are plastic coverings placed on the grooves of the teeth to seal off food particles and decay-causing bacteria.
These are often placed on the permanent molars and last for 6 months to 2 years.
Other preventive measures
"Usually, the parents are very proud when their children learn how to brush teeth on their own," Dr. Karing shares. However, she warns that parents and caregivers should always follow-up after the kids brush their teeth until the age of 9.
"Sometimes, hard-to-reach molars are missed by the children, which can eventually lead to dental caries," she says.
Moreover, anyone with bad teeth who looks after a child-parents, grandparents, siblings and caregivers or yayas can pass on their tooth decay when they kiss the baby, share their food, utensils or drinking glass, or even blow food to cool it.
"The mouth of a person with bad teeth harbors Streptococcus Mutans, a parasitic bacteria and the primary causing agent of tooth decay," Dr. Karing divulges. So, if you have tooth decay, take the necessary precautions not to pass on your saliva-borne bacteria to the child.
The tooth fairy incarnate
"I always allot 20-30 minutes of information consult for the parents to brief them about proper dental care and the procedure which I am recommending for their child," Dr. Karing discusses.
She notices that some parents do not take her consult seriously. "There are times that parents would text cellphone messages in front of me showing obvious disinterest," observes Dr. Karing. But, this does not stop the committed dentist from her advocacy of promoting awareness on the importance of healthy baby teeth.
"In the future, I would like to go around impoverished communities with my colleagues to give lectures to mothers on correct dental care for children," Dr. Karing enthuses.
She wants her young patients to have a pleasant and exciting experience whenever they come to her clinic. "I devised a reward system for kids who cooperated during their check-ups and dental procedures," she says. "So far, it has proven to be very effective."
With dentists like Dr. Karing around, indeed, the tooth fairy is among us after all.
Dental Point Clinic is at Door 2, Belfran Arcade, Palma Gil St., Bo. Obrero, Davao City with telephone numbers 2278188 or 2272096. Email address: mcdc_carriedo@yahoo.com.
Philippine Pediatric Dental Society, Davao City Chapter: Dr. Carriedo-Obach, Ma. Carmen Dina, Dr. Chua, Rachel, Dr. Domingo, Ma. Christina, Dr. Lim, Aileen and Dr. Yap, Julie.
For your comments and suggestions, you may e-mail me at mom.about.town.dvo@gmail.com.
