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Dental hygienist Nichole Nelkin examines 11-year-old patient Alexa Chaisson’s teeth during a routine dental cleaning visit at the office of Jane Birriel in Morgan City. (The Daily Review/Shea Drake)

Dentists: Take care of kids' teeth

By SHEA DRAKE

Tri-City area dental professionals encourage parents to begin preventive dental care as early as the infancy age range.
February is National Children’s Dental Health month. According to the Bayou District Dental Association, children’s teeth are meant to last a lifetime.
But that could be problematic, based on the personal-finance website WalletHub’s study on dental health in the United States for 2017. It ranks Louisiana sixth among U.S. states for the worst dental health.
Changing that statistic starts early in life.
“Well, the first time parents are encouraged to bring their children in is as infants,” Bayou District Dental Association east St. Mary Chairperson Dean Listi said.
“They can learn the proper care for when the teeth first begin to erupt around six months or so of age. So they’ll know how to care for their teeth when they come in.
“Naturally, nothing would be done treatmentwise to the child. It’s just more of an educational thing for parents.”
Dental hygienist Nichole Nelkin stated in addition to getting parents involved early with their child’s dental care, parents should make it fun for the kids “because a lot of times it’s not their favorite thing to do.”
“As far as a child’s first visit, if the parent notices before age 3 what appears to be a dark spot that could be decay, then they are encouraged to bring them in at whatever age that may be, 18 months, 2 years, whatever,” Listi said.
“But by in large, three years is a good time to begin to introduce them to having their teeth cleaned and examined.”
Prevention is a big factor in maintaining dental health without breaking the bank, especially when dealing with kids, Nelkin said.
Proper diet and proper oral hygiene are musts for young children, especially, to get them into the program of caring for their mouth, Listi said. High sugar content foods and liquids can lead to a lot of decay without proper care.
One cause of decay is called bottle mouth syndrome.
“It’s when a baby goes to sleep with a bottle of milk every night,” Nelkin said. “You’ll see a lot of decay from that because milk is very acidic.
“If a child is drinking milk a lot, make sure to rinse with water or brush. Brush before they go to bed. Don’t let them go to sleep with the milk still sitting around in the mouth. That’s what’s going to end up causing the decay.”
Nelkin recommends eating cheese as a snack.
“Try to minimize the amount of sugar and frequency throughout the day that they’re having sugar and acidity, like orange juice, apple juice, any of the juices,” Nelkin said.
“But cheese is a really good snack. It has the calcium and phosphate that help to protect the teeth so it’s a really good snack for them as opposed to artificial or sugary treats, things like that.”
Beyond brush and flossing, good eating habits are the most important habits and behaviors to teach children to ensure they have good dental hygiene, Nelkin said.
“And making sure that they’re comfortable when they come to see us,” Nelkin said. “Make it fun for them, not like it’s a scary place or a chore to make them brush and floss.”
Nelkin also suggests using mouthwash.
“You’ve got to watch with kids who can’t spit,” Nelkin said. “If they’re old enough to be able to spit it out in the sink, then a mouthwash with fluoride would be really good to use as well, just to get that daily dose.
“It’s not that high of a dose as you would get with a fluoride varnish at a dental office. But it’s a good way to get the nutrients your teeth need daily.”
WalletHub’s state ranking study results for Dental Health in Louisiana (1 is best, 25 average):
—No. 43, percentage of adults who visited a dentist in the past year.
—No. 50, dentist per capita.
—No. 43, percentage of adults with poor or fair oral condition.
—No. 20, percentage of adults who experienced pain in the past year due to their oral condition.
—No. 49, percentage of adults with low life satisfaction due to their oral condition.
—No. 46, reduced dentist visits due to costs.
—No. 44, share of el-derly population with no natural teeth.
The Bayou District Dental Association is a four-parish district which includes Lafourche, Terrebonne, Assumption and east St. Mary Parish.
Listi has a dental of-fice in Morgan City. Nelkin is a dental hy-gienist at the dental practice of Jane Birriel, also in Morgan City.

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