What is the function of baby teeth?
Baby teeth usually fall out between the ages of 2 and 6, and they have many functions that are very helpful in children’s oral development.
Baby teeth, also known as primary dentition , are the first teeth to erupt during human development. They begin to develop during the embryonic period and sprout in early childhood.
Although it may not seem like it, baby teeth have many functions in the development of the child and although it can be a hassle to have to go through these dental pain several times, it is worth the result. The milk teeth are made up of 20 pieces: eight incisors, four canines and eight molars. They begin to appear around 6 months and after two years they begin to fall while little by little the definitive ones sprout, this process is maintained until approximately 6 years. The main functions of baby teeth are:
– Prepare the food that comes through the mouth , with the aim that the child can assimilate and make the most of the food.
– They favor the growth of the jaws because the child can train the jaw bone, without them the child’s jaw would not grow.
– They ensure a correct bite and future dentition. Baby teeth “save” the site to the permanent teeth in order to control their growth so that they do not deviate or become trapped . That is to say, they have the function of a guide.
– Development of phonation. The child learns to speak correctly because the anterior teeth allow the emission of certain sounds.
– Aesthetic function. They are responsible for maintaining a correct proportion of the face so that it is aesthetic to the eye, without them our face would be flatter.
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IMPORTANCE OF TAKING CARE OF BABY TEETH
Many people think that baby teeth are just a transition step and that it does not matter much, because if something happens to them, there will still be the final teeth. Big mistake. Although the milk teeth are in our mouth for only 6 years, the truth is that we have to take care of them as well as if they were the definitive ones. For example, did you know that cavities that appear in baby teeth can be transmitted to permanent ones? And not only that, in the worst case the infection can affect the nerve and infect it, causing pain in the child. In this sense, cavities in milk teeth must also be treated and filled if we do not want to drag the problems that appear in milk teeth to the permanent teeth.
A separate case is the so-called “bottle caries” , they are so called because they commonly appear in babies during the first year of life. It usually occurs when the baby’s teeth are in contact with the milk in the mouth for too long, for example because they fall asleep while breastfeeding or bottle feeding. As milk has natural sugars (lactose), cavities appear.
HOW TO CARE FOR BABY TEETH CORRECTLY?
They need so much care because cavities are painful and children with cavities usually end up eating worse and growing more slowly. In addition, milk teeth are vital for the correct appearance of permanent teeth because they will function as a guide for them. Imagine that for a cavity or other reasons your child has to remove his baby tooth sooner than necessary. What would happen? Well, the teeth would move towards the empty space and there would be a poor development of the permanent teeth.
Therefore, below we leave you with some tips to ensure that your children have adequate oral hygiene from the beginning.
1. Take care of your baby’s mouth from the first moment. Even when women are pregnant, cariogenic bacterial flora can pass to the embryo, so mothers must also take care of themselves.
2. Clean the baby’s gums. Even if they do not have teeth yet, you can ensure proper hygiene from the beginning. To do this, wash their mouths twice a day, once in the morning after breakfast and the second before going to sleep at night. A little water on the gum is enough. When later the child learns to spit, you can mix a little pasta in the water, so that he spits it out at once.
3. Prevents the child from falling asleep during feedings. It is important to prevent the child from falling asleep with the bottle in his mouth. The milk in contact with the teeth will favor the appearance of the bacterial flora and the enamel will gradually be destroyed. It is easier than it may sound because although we think that in 5 or 6 years it is difficult for cavities to appear, the truth is that the enamel of milk teeth is very fine and the risk tends to be underestimated.
4 Control your child’s diet. Watch the amount of sugars you take. It is not that you cannot take them, of course you can, even a certain amount is good for your development. However, what we have to watch out for is that afterwards he washes his mouth (or we help him). More than the amount of sugars it takes, the time the sugar comes into contact with the teeth matters more.> And the sweeter the food, the more careful we must be. According to dentists, the foods with the highest concentration of sugars are: chocolate, gummies or candies, drinks (juices, soft drinks …), honey, cooked fruit, pastries, cocoa …
5. Teach him to carry out proper dental hygiene. As your child grows and develops, he will have to learn to be autonomous and just wash his mouth. It can be difficult because children at that age are not aware of the future importance of teeth. Therefore, you must teach him how to brush his teeth in a playful and fun way, so that he wants to continue doing it today. If we force him to do it, he will get a habit of brushing his teeth and we will only achieve the opposite effect.
6. If, for whatever reasons, your child loses a milk tooth earlier than expected, he or she will need a temporary implant, in order to serve as a substitute for the milk tooth in its guiding role and the rest of the teeth do not deviate . So he goes to a dentist with him.
Dr. Tabriella Perivolaris, Sara's mother and fan of fashion, beauty, motherhood, among others, about the female universe. Since 2018 she has been working as a copywriter, always bringing to her articles a little of her experience and experience as a mother and woman.