Contents
Repeated early cavities? Our child could suffer from bottle-feeding syndrome. A few good habits can be enough to guard against this disease which sometimes leads to dietary imbalances.
What is bottle-feeding syndrome?
Bottle syndrome is characterized by a significant number of early cavities, which can affect up to all of the child’s teeth. It usually occurs around the age of 3-4More can prey on younger children Again. Thanks to prevention messages, disseminated in particular by dental surgeons to pregnant women and young mothers, the number of children suffering from this syndrome has fortunately decreased in recent years.
Bottle cavity: how to diagnose it?
The first teeth affected are those located at the anterior (front) level, from canine to canine, up and down. If the disease is at an early stage, only a dental surgeon can detect it. If, on the contrary, it has already progressed, parents may observe a brown discoloration on one or more of the child’s teeth. Very weakened, decayed teeth also break easily. It is a sign that should alert.
How to fight against these early cavities?
As the name suggests, lThe main culprit of this syndrome is the bottle. And more precisely, its excessive use. Indeed, this syndrome affects children whose the teeth are in prolonged contact with a sweet drink inside the bottle (soda, fruit juice, sweetened milk…). It is therefore not recommended, even to calm baby, occupy him or make him wait, to give all day long a bottle with anything other than water without sugar inside.
Also affected are children who are given a sweet bottle for a nap or at night. In both cases, the milk teeth bathe for several hours in a cariogenic liquid, without the saliva being able to play its role: to remineralize the teeth and buffer with acids. The nocturnal period being a period during which the production of saliva decreases sharply, the phenomenon is all the more important.
Does the milk cause cavities?
It is therefore not so much the milk – naturally sweetened by its lactose, but even more if sugar is added to it – as leaving it in a bottle that the baby would suck for several hours, which risks causing cavities.
Why treat cavities on baby teeth?
Cavities, even on baby teeth, must be treated as soon as possible. On the one hand because they can be very painful. On the other hand because they can have serious consequences, whether for other milk teeth, whether risk colonizing, but also for the final teeth to come. It is also the general health of the child that is at stake. Indeed, when the decay reaches the pulp zone of the tooth, where the nerves and blood vessels are located, an abscess forms. Then the bacteria migrate into the blood and can even infect other organs, which are located at a distance!
How to treat bottle-feeding disease?
In many cases, in-office care is not enough to treat decayed teeth in toddlers and l’extraction, in order to stop the caries spread, is necessary. Depending on the number of teeth to be removed and the age of the child, a General anaesthesia could be considered. To prevent teeth from fracturing, pediatric crowns can be placed on the molars. When many teeth have been removed, it is possible to use small appliances. To be renewed often, to follow the growth of the child, they are often very expensive.
What are the consequences for the child of bottle cavities?
In addition to the consequences related to cavities themselves (pain, abscess, infections, etc.), bottle-feeding syndrome can have other implications for child development. Whether his baby teeth are weakened by decay or have been extracted, theillness prevents him from having a normal diet. In addition to the dietary imbalances that this causes, the lack of good chewing affects the harmonious development of his jaw, which can affect the final teeth to come. Finally, aesthetic problems can disrupt their social integration and psychological balance.
How to prevent bottle-feeding syndrome?
In order to guarantee your child good oral hygiene, the only way to fight against cavities, it is advisable to integrate these few new habits:
- The bottle is neither a blanket nor a pacifier : except if it containspure water, never leave it to a baby or toddler indefinitely, especially during a nap or at night. Milk, which contains lactose, is naturally sweet, so it should be considered in the same way as other sugary drinks. Sodas and fruit juices are twice as bad because they are both sweet and sour. An acidity that therefore persists even in the products and “light”, too.
- Babies’ teeth should be brushed as soon as they grow. At first they can be cleaned by parents using a compress soaked in water, then with a toothbrush, suitable for the child’s age. Around 2 years old, fluoride toothpaste makes its appearance. It helps to strengthen the crystal structure of teeth. However, beware of overdose which can have the opposite effects. This is why fluoride supplements are no longer systematic and must depend on a check-up to be carried out at the dentist.
- The child’s first consultation with a dentist should take place around the age of 3. This is a crucial meeting for screening for possible problems that may arise early, such as bottle-feeding syndrome, but also an opportunity for the dentist to warn those to come. It also allows the child to understand the universe of the dentist from an early age and to avoid developing a phobia of this practitioner.