Your child’s first visit to the dentist

Your baby is growing a little more every day… Awakening, development, size… everything changes rapidly, and especially in his mouth! Around six months, the first

will appear and the first baby teeth will make their way into his jaw. This is the time to ask the right questions and put in place the right reflexes, so that your child has the best possible dental development. When to see the dentist for the first time? How to prepare your child? We take stock with Cléa Lugardon, dentist and Jona Andersen, pedodontist.

At what age does a baby owe the dentist?

“If in France, health insurance offers free appointments with the dentist for children from three years old, it is recommended to perform the first consultation around a year », Explains Jona Andersen. You might think it’s a bit early, because all the baby teeth have not yet taken place in the jawbone, but this is not the case: “From the baby’s first year, we can see a certain many things that could affect the development of a child’s teething. We can quickly assess the risk of cavities. It happens that the first teeth of some children are already decayed, which can have harmful effects on their health. “

“The first visit to the dentist is also a good way for the child to familiarize himself with the place, and to have a first contact with the instruments”, argues Cléa Lugardon, “the sooner he will go for the first time at the dentist, the faster he will be at ease during future visits! “

How is the first visit to the dentist?

“The first appointment with the dentist is first of all important transmission of information to parents on children’s health and dental hygiene ”, summarizes Cléa Lugardon. “This is where we are going to give parents the best reflexes to adopt. There is the question of eating habits. We recommend especially not to let the child nibble and drink sugary drinks. To give an example, some parents regularly give a bottle of fruit juice to relieve the child. It is the worst thing to do! This can lead to early caries, called bottle-feeding syndrome ”. It will also be recommended to parents not to share spoons or toothbrushes with their child, as caries bacteria are often contagious and can be transmitted by adults.

The visit will also include an examination of the child’s teeth. The practitioner will also assess his risk of cavities: “We will forecast whether the risk is high or not in children, and we can thus determine the precautions to be taken and the type of toothpaste to use”, explains Jona Andersen.

What is the ideal frequency of baby dentist visits?

Once this first visit to the dentist has been made, two scenarios exist: “In the best case, the child has a fairly low risk of caries, and the visits can be relatively spaced”, summarizes Jona Andersen. “Usually, we see the child again for its second year, and then every six months, in order to follow the evolution of its dentition and monitor the positioning of the milk teeth, and thus detect any dental malocclusions ”.

The second scenario is when the child has a high caries risk, or is affected by pathologies (often hereditary or due to the mother’s consumption of certain drugs during pregnancy): “In this case, it is recommended to consult every three to four months for increased surveillance ”.

My child has fallen and hit his mouth, should I see a dentist?

If the dentist can be consulted for routine visits, it may be necessary to consult after a fall or trauma to the child’s mouth : “A child who falls, it happens very often, explains Cléa Lugardon, it is recommended to come between three and four months after the fall because like that, we can examine and see if there is a potential fracture, or a dental displacement. In addition, it may happen that after a trauma, the child’s tooth take on a gray color. It is a transient hemorrhage. It should not cause parents great concern, but you still have to monitor its development ”.

Dentist and pedodontist, what are the differences?

Is a dentist suitable to take care of a young child? This is the question we can legitimately ask. Isn’t it better to favor a pedodontist (the dentist specializing in young children)? “De facto, all dentists have received training to treat children. On the other hand, some feel less comfortable, and may refuse to receive them, while others will specialize to accommodate them as well as possible, ”explains Cléa Lugardon. “You should know that specialists in pediatric dentistry have suitable equipment for optimal reception of your child,” adds Jona Andersen.  

How to prepare your child for his first visit to the dentist?

That’s it, you have made an appointment for your child’s first visit. How can we help him to live this moment well? “For the first visit, around a year old, it doesn’t necessarily help much to prepare him, because it is a really very quick examination », Tempers Joana Andersen. When it has grown a little, it is essential use positive vocabulary : “We see so many parents using phrases like ‘don’t worry’, ‘it won’t hurt’ or ‘don’t be afraid of injections’. Conversely, these words will worry the child. Parents tend to transmit their own phobias to their children, ”says Cléa Lugardon. It is best to use simple, positive words, such as: “The dentist is the specialist for the teeth. He’ll ask you to open your mouth and look at your teeth. We will go back there regularly. He will show you how to keep them looking good and healthy all the time. This is how he will learn to have good oral hygiene, and avoid fear of the dentist. A good point to keep beautiful teeth all your life.