Oral Health

A Healthy Mouth Begins Before Birth

My life irrevocably changed when my wife Lindsey gave birth to our first child, Benjamin. As a pediatric dentist, I have spent countless hours studying oral health and caring for other people’s children. Pediatric dentistry is my passion—one that’s even more meaningful to me now that I have a child of my own. Pregnancy, birth

Tooth Be Told: Dental Care Resources for Parents

From kid-friendly videos to dental trauma guidelines, the list below includes our favorite dental health resources for parents. Use the information and tips you find here to help your children develop great habits and create beautiful smiles that will last a lifetime! 2min2x.org This website helps parents encourage their children to brush for two minutes,

Emergency Dental Care Tips For Children At Home

Dental traumas are often much harder on parents than they are on kids. When an accident or dental emergency occurs or an issue arises, it’s best to call your pediatric dentist right away. They’ll help you figure out how to respond and keep your child comfortable until staff are available to provide care, and if

Patient Success Stories: Teeth Whitening

Parents often start to ask about teeth whitening when their children reach the age of about eight or nine. That’s the time when permanent upper incisors (four in front) begin to appear. The enamel quality of permanent teeth is different, so they sometimes seem yellow next to the chalky whiteness of baby teeth. As a

Protect Permanent Molars With Sealants

Permanent molars usually start to surface and settle in around age six—right about the same time that parents are trying to give kids more control over their brushing. Unlike baby teeth, which are fairly flat, these permanent teeth have much deeper and more pronounced grooves that hang onto food, plaque and other gunk in the

Patient Success Stories: Anterior Crossbite

One of the issues we frequently encounter as we partner with parents and families in dental care is anterior crossbite — a situation that occurs when one or more of the top teeth sit behind the bottom teeth as a child bites down. In most cases, anterior crossbite is caused by the over-retention of baby

Bad Breath Blues: Tips and Tricks for Kids

Girl having Bad Breathing smell

Bad breath happens to all of us—even our healthy children—and it can be every bit as unpleasant and embarrassing for them, too. While the food they just ate (think garlic or onions) may be a contributing factor, it’s just as likely that other reasons are to blame for their bad breath blues. Offering mints or

Sink Your Teeth Into These Oral Care Guidelines

Girl Brushing teeth

As soon as the first tooth pokes through your child’s gums, you should begin to implement an oral care routine in the morning and evening. Every child is unique and responds to toothbrushing and flossing differently. You may encounter resistance from time to time as your child grows and develops personality, but the struggle will feel totally worth

Sweet Tips for Your Spooky Night

Halloween can be a seriously spooky holiday for moms and dads trying to teach their children how to live happy-but healthy-lives. Allowing your little superheroes, princesses and goblins some freedom, while instilling good habits, can feel incredibly overwhelming. Have no fear! If you follow the simple tips below, you’ll help your kids experience all of

The Pacifier Conundrum

When feeding, rocking, snuggling and singing just aren’t soothing your little one, a pacifier can be an easy and convenient way to provide comfort and security. But whether or not to use a pacifier is an agonizing decision for many parents of toddlers and infants because so much conflicting information about this topic exists. As

Better Than a Kick in the Teeth

According to the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), more than 7 million sports- and recreation-related injuries occur each year, and over half of them are experienced by children. Hospitals, for example, Medical City Kids Orthopedics (visit their website here for the statistics), see thousands of children every year with these kinds of injuries, and

Chew On This

Gum may actually support and promote good oral health. According to a recent study published in the journal PLOS One, chewing gum for up to 10 minutes can remove as much as 10 percent of the bacteria from your saliva. In addition to trapping bacteria, gum chewing dramatically increases saliva flow, which neutralizes acids, efficiently