Milk teeth: do you know their fundamental role?
What if we told you that milk teeth are essential for the growth and development of permanent teeth? Many mothers underestimate this aspect by not caring at all about the health of their children's milk teeth and compromising their final adult teeth.
In this article we will answer the most common questions: when do they pop up? How many milk teeth are there? How are they divided? Can they get rotten? When do they fall?
If you are recognizing yourself in these questions, read on, but first a short video for you in which to discover the ideal hygiene rules for children.
When do milk teeth appear?
The pregnancy is over and you are finally holding your baby in your arms. The first few months, mother's milk is her only source of nourishment, but at some point it starts with baby food and gradually with other foods as well. So the long awaited moment of weaning arrives and the first milk teeth appear!
Needless to hide, it is one of the exciting moments in the life of all parents.
Also known as primary, deciduous or temporary teeth, milk teeth appear from 6 months and within the first year of a baby's life. It often happens that in males the onset is later than in females. The order in which they come out is not accidental, they follow a very specific pattern that we want to summarize below.
The first to enter the scene are the central incisors, followed by the lateral incisors and the canines; the last are the molars that appear around 13 months. Obviously all these types of milk teeth will make up both the upper and lower dental arches in the baby's mouth. In total, the baby gets to have 20 milk teeth.
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Teething symptoms and remedies
There are some aspects that you can notice in the baby to understand if the time of teething is approaching. In fact, the discomfort that accompanies the coming out of milk teeth are very common, it is not anything serious, just some slight ailment that passes quickly.
The teething process usually manifests itself through:
- excessive salivation
- rash around the mouth due to excess saliva
- cough
- cry
- irritability
- refusal to eat
As a mother, what can you do to alleviate this phase?
For example, avoid very hot foods, preferring cold or room temperature foods if possible.
Gently massage the gums to counteract the pressure caused by the emerging tooth.
See your pediatrician for advice to administer medications such as an analgesic.
Baby teeth: take care of them in the right way
Oral hygiene is the basis of everything and applies not only to adults, but also to children from the first months of life. When the baby teeth have not yet erupted, you can clean the baby's gums with a soft wipe right away. after meals, thus removing bacteria.
When the first baby teeth start to appear, it's time to start using a toothbrush. On the market there are toothbrushes ideal for the little ones, colored and with soft bristles.
Just use a minimal amount of fluoride toothpaste, and show your child how to brush their teeth on their own. Try to make everything look like a game, so the child will associate the time of brushing the teeth with something fun.
Milk teeth play a fundamental role: they allow the child to chew and therefore experience "hard" foods to bite that otherwise they would not be able to eat. Furthermore, they are responsible for phonation, therefore for the child's first words pronounced in a way. correct thanks to the teeth. Finally, they guide the permanent teeth to erupt in the correct position.
The first cavities and the visit to the dentist
Let's dispel the myth that says "milk teeth do not decay", unfortunately even milk teeth can be subject to cavities.
One of the main causes of cavities on baby teeth is the parents' incorrect habit of making the baby fall asleep using a bottle. This practice is also carried out when the little one finds it difficult to calm down and has a crying fit. Some mothers and fathers use the sugar-soaked pacifier, which obviously, remaining in contact with the teeth for a long time, causes the first cavities.
In addition, around 5 or 6 years of life, the first definitive molar appears which is full of grooves where the plaque is deposited, and it is easy for it to become expensive also because that is the age in which the child discovers sweets and snacks. , main culprits of tooth decay.
If you are wondering when to have your child visit the dentist, know that you can start as early as 3 years old; even more so to check for any cavities on milk teeth and immediately run for cover with the right care.
The dentist will make a general examination of the whole mouth, checking the growth of the molars and deciding if it is appropriate to carry out a specific treatment.
In the case of caries, the dentist will take care of the filling: after having removed the part of the decayed tooth, he will fill the hole with a resin and dry everything through a special blue light. The tooth will be as good as new and no marks will be seen.
There is still something the dentist can do for molars that have a tendency to decay: it is sealing, a simple procedure that isolates the tooth by coating it with a fluoride-based resin and protects it from attack by sugars. painless and fast.
When do milk teeth fall out?
The loss of milk teeth is a physiological phenomenon. The process of replacing milk teeth with permanent teeth is called a trade-in.
Baby teeth begin to fall out around age 6. By the time your child reaches 13, he usually no longer has baby teeth, all of which will have fallen out and have been replaced by the final teeth.
Falling out of milk teeth is a painless process, although sometimes the child may feel discomfort especially when the tooth begins to "wobble" but still remains attached to the gum. The gums can also be affected and appear swollen and inflamed, in these cases consult the doctor who will decide whether to administer paracetamol to relieve the symptoms.
The order in which milk teeth fall out is usually the same in which they were born: first the lower central incisors, then the upper central incisors, premolars, molars, canines and so on.
Complications
So far we have seen how the process of birth and falling out of milk teeth occurs under normal conditions. However, there are special cases in which complications can arise. We are going to list them below so that we can identify them early and proceed to the right medical treatment.
- Teeth fall does not happen on schedule
Deciduous teeth can hinder the proper development of permanent teeth, setting the stage for dental malocclusion. Contact your dentist immediately and rely on his therapeutic advice.
- Loss of milk teeth does not occur
In these cases, a small surgical procedure must be used to remove them without interfering with the growth of the permanent teeth.
- Baby teeth begin to fall out very early
It can happen that due to trauma the teeth undergo an early fall. In these cases there could be structural alterations in the permanent teeth that will arise later.
- Milk teeth fall out in old age
The risk of incurring inflammation or pathologies is greater and permanent teeth will suffer with stains on the enamel
- The milk teeth have fallen out but the permanent teeth are not growing
A phenomenon called ankylosis occurs: Permanent teeth become trapped inside the bone and consequently cannot come out. This condition often requires surgery.
- A permanent tooth is born before the fall of the deciduous counterpart
If the milk tooth does not fall by itself within 3 months of the event, surgery is performed.
Final tips for moms and dads
As always, we would like to summarize what has been said in this article so that it serves as a reminder to spectator parents of the growth of their children.
- The eruption of milk teeth is a natural and painless process, however you can take some small steps to relieve the symptoms: avoid hot food or massage the gums.
- The care of milk teeth is not to be underestimated: they can be prone to cavities especially if children consume a lot of sweets. Try to explain to them in simple words what sugar does on their teeth and propose alternative foods to those that are very sugary. Make sure about your child's oral hygiene and also make periodic visits to the dentist.
- Falling milk teeth is a normal phenomenon that usually has no complications. If you notice anything abnormal, contact your doctor. Losing your teeth can be traumatic for the child, try to set everything up as a game: the fallen tooth goes under the pillow, a mouse takes it and in return leaves a coin.
