You may hear some people saying that their child didn\u2019t see a dentist until they had a full set of teeth, around the age of three. Please don\u2019t leave it this long! Bacteria can start forming in babies\u2019 mouths from a super young age.<\/p>\n
The earlier you start taking their oral health seriously, the more smooth sailing their future smile journey will be. We love meeting little ones here at smilogy!<\/p>\n
The Australian Dental Association (ADA) recommends that you come in for the first check-up after they get their first tooth, or before their first birthday – whichever comes first.<\/p>\n
All babies are different, which is why there\u2019s no set in stone date that they\u2019ll achieve the big milestones. Some get their first tooth as early as 4 months old, others at around 10 months. There\u2019s usually no cause for concern about being \u201cearly\u201d or \u201clate\u201d, and your dentist will do their best to reassure you of this.<\/p>\n
Even though your baby is probably too young to understand what\u2019s happening, they respond best to calmness and positivity. Show them lots of love and attention and try to hide any nerves you may have on the day – they can pick up on body language.<\/p>\n
When your baby is teething, they may struggle to get comfortable. You can use chilled (but never frozen) teething rings to help them settle in.<\/p>\n
From the beginning of the appointment, the dentist will put you and baby at ease. It\u2019s worth bringing another adult with you if you can, because there will be lots of questions. One of you can focus on soothing the baby if they\u2019re fussy while the dentist looks inside their mouth. This leaves the other free to chat away!<\/p>\n
Dentists are well-trained in dealing with babies, and will be very thorough. You\u2019ll go through the baby\u2019s full history, talking about things like:<\/p>\n
You\u2019ll also learn a lot at this first appointment. Your dentist will make sure you have the skills you need to protect your child\u2019s smile at home.<\/p>\n
Discover:<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t worry about any issues that may be detected – dental problems found early are often easier to prevent and treat.<\/p>\n
Both before and after your first appointment, it\u2019s important to get into a good routine at home. If you start doing this when they\u2019re young then it\u2019s just a normal part of life. Try and model good behaviour in your own habits, especially as they get older. Brush your teeth as a family!<\/p>\n
Bacteria can get into babies\u2019 mouths even when they\u2019re very young. Before teeth come in, wipe their gums with a clean cloth twice a day. After they start getting teeth, use a special children\u2019s brush, without toothpaste until they reach 18 months. Your child may wriggle, so you can lie them on your lap or on a bed. Don\u2019t forget to floss!<\/p>\n
Finally, start associating the dentist with positive things. You never want them to learn fear or anxieties, or think that the dentist is a punishment. A dental office is actually a positive place!<\/p>\n
Ready for baby\u2019s first appointment? At smilogy, we aim to make every visit as calm and stress-free as possible. From day one, you\u2019ll start building a relationship with us and we\u2019ll put you at ease.<\/p>\n
Find out more about children\u2019s dental care<\/a> at our edgecliff and castle hill clinics, or book online<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When to book your baby’s first dental visit, how to prepare and what to expect, plus tips for caring for little teeth at home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":191,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ih-teens-kids"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":275,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189\/revisions\/275"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smilogy.com.au\/dental-clinics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}