Do All Children Need Dental Sealants? 

Has your child started losing his baby teeth? Dr. Sylvester Adu Boahene suggests that this is the best time to start considering dental sealants for your child. As soon as permanent teeth begin to erupt, your child is ready for a consultation session with a kids’ dentist regarding getting tooth sealants. As a first-time parent, you will be surprised at how beneficial dental sealants can be to your child’s dental health.

What Are Dental Sealants?

They are types of tooth fillings commonly used in preventive pediatric dentistry to preserve the health of children’s teeth. Sealants feature plastic-like materials that are painted on the chewing surfaces of teeth in a thin layer. The sealant material then hardens, creating a barrier to plaque and food residues from breaching the different layers of teeth.

Although dental sealants for kids are types of dental fillings, they work differently. Usually, instead of being used to repair dental cavities and tooth decay, dental sealants are used before cavities start forming on teeth.

Types of Dental Sealants

Dental sealants differ based on the materials used to make them. Both alternatives are aesthetically pleasing, so you do not have to worry about the appearance of your smile after getting sealants. The two main types of tooth sealants are:

• Glass ionomers – are the types of sealants made of acrylic. They usually release fluoride on teeth over time. It means that they offer double protection against bacteria that cause tooth caries.
• Composite resin fillings – feature composite material but do not release fluoride on teeth. However, they last longer than glass ionomer sealants.

4 Reasons Why Dental Sealants Needed

Many parents still need to be convinced of the relevance of trying out dental treatments like dental sealants. If you need extra convincing to get your child started on dental sealant treatments, consider the following four major benefits of sealants for children:

• To preserve natural teeth – permanent teeth do not grow back when they are removed. Since these teeth are supposed to serve you for the rest of your life, you must protect them as much as possible. Sealants help children preserve their permanent teeth when they erupt early in their childhood.
• To fight dental cavities – the primary role of dental sealants for kids is that of fighting bacteria that cause tooth cavities. It is especially crucial for children in their cavity-prone ages of 6 to 14 years.
• To prevent urgent dental problems – although emergency pediatric dentists in Lancaster are readily available to attend to the urgent dental issues of your child, it is not necessary to visit a dental ER for children. Dental sealants prevent infections like dental decay, preventing urgent oral problems like severe tooth pain, necessitating emergency care.
• Kids are not the best at caring for their teeth – if you have no other reason to visit a kids’ dentist near you, consider the fact that kids do not do a good job at caring for their teeth. From poor oral habits like thumbsucking to poor food choices like crushing hard candy, there are many ways that kids can damage their teeth. Besides, children do not usually keep up with excellent oral hygiene, further increasing their chances of getting cavities.

Are Sealants Suitable for All Children?

Pediatric dentists recommend that all children get tooth sealants. In fact, it is not just for permanent teeth. As soon as your child has teeth, they can get tooth sealants. The idea is to preserve teeth for as long as possible. Baby teeth need to be preserved to prevent premature tooth loss that results in several orthodontic dental issues. Permanent teeth, on the other hand, must be preserved to increase their longevity. This way, they can hopefully last the rest of your child’s life without the need for dental extractions and replacements. Besides, aren’t tooth sealants a great way to stay on top of your child’s dental health by preventing as many dental infections as possible?

Summary

With all the benefits of dental sealants, you should be excited about getting your child started on the treatment. Besides, dental insurances often fully cover the cost of dental sealants for children under 18, which should be great news for you as a parent.