{"id":120,"date":"2019-02-20T16:14:31","date_gmt":"2019-02-20T16:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/?p=120"},"modified":"2019-02-20T16:14:31","modified_gmt":"2019-02-20T16:14:31","slug":"the-importance-of-baby-teeth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/2019\/02\/20\/the-importance-of-baby-teeth\/","title":{"rendered":"A Children\u2019s Dentist Explains the Importance of Baby Teeth"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"BoyMore and more research indicates that oral health has an intimate connection with a person\u2019s overall well-being. That is just one reason why parents need to be diligent about making sure that their young ones learn how to care for their smiles and attend regular checkups with their children\u2019s dentist in Portage.<\/a> Still, some people might think that taking care about primary (baby) teeth really isn\u2019t that <\/em>important. After all, these teeth will fall out eventually anyway, right? In the spirit of Children\u2019s Dental Health Month, let\u2019s take a moment to talk about why these little chompers are <\/em>important.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Placeholders for Permanent Teeth<\/h2>\n

One of the most important jobs of your child\u2019s baby teeth is to make way for the permanent teeth that will eventually develop. If a child\u2019s baby teeth fall out too early due to decay or trauma, the teeth around them may drift out of place. Therefore, the permanent teeth will not have enough room to come in at their proper locations. The result may be a misaligned smile that requires orthodontic treatment.<\/p>\n

Protection for the Permanent Teeth<\/h2>\n

The permanent teeth may be developing beneath the surface long before they begin to erupt. When a baby tooth suffers from an untreated cavity, the decay may spread beneath the gum line, leading to an infection that affects the permanent tooth underneath it.<\/p>\n

Proper Nutrition<\/h2>\n

Proper nutrition is essential for developing bodies. Teaching your child to love vitamin-rich fruits and veggies at an early age can help them make healthy choices for the rest of their life. Unfortunately, dental problems can stop a child from enjoying healthful meals if cavities make it painful to chew. Your child may gravitate toward softer foods, many of which are not as beneficial for the body as crunchy, raw produce and well-cooked lean proteins.<\/p>\n

Self-Esteem<\/h2>\n

Teeth play a huge role in helping us to enunciate certain sounds. If the baby teeth fall out too early, your child may not learn to speak as clearly as they should, which can greatly affect their self-esteem. Visible tooth decay, as well as a lack of adequate support for your child\u2019s facial muscles due to missing teeth, can affect their appearance and damage their emotional well-being.<\/p>\n

Caring for Your Child\u2019s Smile<\/h2>\n

Clearly, baby teeth are extremely important! To protect your child\u2019s developing smile, it is essential that you bring them to their dentist for a routine checkup every six months or so. Not only will the dental team clean the teeth and look for any problems, but they can also give you and your child personalized tips for at-home care.<\/p>\n

February is Children\u2019s Dental Health Month. If your little one is due for a checkup, now is the perfect time to get an appointment on the books with your family dentist in Portage.<\/p>\n

About the Author<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr. Christine Mousa is an experienced general dentist who specialized in pediatric dentistry during her time in Egypt. Today, she proudly works alongside Dr. Danny Hayes to provide comprehensive care to families in Portage. If you would like our team\u2019s help to care for your child\u2019s smile, contact Advanced Dental Concepts<\/a> at 219-763-6878.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

More and more research indicates that oral health has an intimate connection with a person\u2019s overall well-being. That is just one reason why parents need to be diligent about making sure that their young ones learn how to care for their smiles and attend regular checkups with their children\u2019s dentist in Portage. Still, some people […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":122,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120\/revisions\/122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dentistportagein.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}