West Bowmanville Family Dental is very much a family-oriented dental practice, and we welcome children. We highly recommend that dental visits begin early and suggest you bring your child to see us for regular appointments from age three onwards. Although they are still very young, there are some significant advantages in beginning a preventative regime as soon as possible.

Helping Children Enjoy a Positive Dental Experience

When a child visits us for the very first time, we go out of our way to ensure it is a positive experience, making it as enjoyable and as interesting as we can. Introducing a child to a new environment when they are curious is a much more positive experience than waiting until a child develops a dental problem. If a child’s first introduction to dental care in Newcastle is when they are in pain or discomfort and are upset, there is a real danger they will associate seeing the dentist with negative emotions. Also, parents pay a vital role in making visits to the dentist a positive and enjoyable experience. Make sure you talk about the dentist using only positive and child-friendly terms so that they understand regular dental visits are a good thing and nothing to fear.

What to Expect When Your Child First Sees the Dentist?

During this first visit, we will gently check their entire mouth as dentistry is about far more than just teeth! We also check the condition of their gums and lips and make sure their jaws are developing correctly. Our dentist will take a full medical history as it’s important to consider other factors that could affect your child’s oral health and which help us to assess their risk of tooth decay and other dental diseases. All this information is used to devise a suitable preventative dental care plan showing how frequently your child will need to visit the dentist for checkups and professional dental cleanings. An important part of this visit is talking to you about your child’s dental health as our dental team has a wealth of knowledge that many parents find very useful.

Learn How to Care for Your Child’s Teeth

We can talk to you about how to brush your child’s teeth correctly, showing you how to make sure they are cleaned thoroughly. Our Clarington kids dentist can also discuss which toothbrush is best to use and even which toothpaste and how much to use each time. As the teeth come into contact with their neighbours, you will need to begin flossing between them. Parents generally need to clean their children’s teeth until about age 7, and we can discuss ways to make the whole experience more enjoyable for you both.

Oral Habits

Sometimes oral habits such as thumb or finger sucking can make a huge difference to a child’s oral health and the development of their teeth and jaws. Thumb and finger sucking is a perfectly normal behaviour in young children and many find it very comforting and soothing. Most children stop sucking their thumb naturally, but if your kid finds it a bit difficult to quit this habit, we can offer advice on how to help them.

When your child visits us from a young age, we can create a comfortable and relaxing “dental home” for them, building a relationship with them that will hopefully last into adulthood. As they grow up, we can teach them how to clean their teeth and can talk to them about why dental care in Courtice is so important. When our dental family works with your family, we can help your child grow up with a healthy smile and all the benefits this brings.