Cavity Numbers Up in Young Kids

What This Means to You

Although baby teeth fall out, they play a key role in the health of the permanent teeth that take their place. So it's important to try to prevent cavities and treat them as soon as possible if and when they do crop up.

Dental care should start even before kids get that first baby tooth. To help keep kids' cavities to a minimum:

• Run a damp washcloth over your baby's gums daily.
• For infants, use an infant toothbrush or gauze to clean teeth as they come in. Use water without toothpaste or infant toothpaste without fluoride.
• Teach kids proper brushing techniques early on (like brushing both the teeth and gums up and down instead of side to side). Let them practice brushing, but make sure you give the teeth a good cleaning yourself.
• Kids can use a pea-sized amount of fluoride-containing toothpaste at around 2 or 3 years old. Always supervise and make sure they spit the toothpaste out.
• Don't put kids to bed — or let them continuously walk around with — a bottle or cup of juice, milk, or breast milk. These liquids just pool around the teeth, which can quickly lead to baby bottle tooth decay (or bottle mouth).
• Limit or avoid fruit juice and sugary drinks.
• Talk to your doctor about fluoride supplements (drops, tablets, or vitamins) if you have well water or live in an area with a non-fluoridated water supply.
• Kids should have their first dental visit at about age 3. You can schedule an appointment earlier if you have any concerns about your child's dental health.

Source: "Trends in Oral Health Status: United States, 1988–1994 and 1999–2004: Data From the Continuous National Health and Examination Survey (NHANES)," U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, April 2007.