LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
Baby bottle tooth decay or early childhood caries, or cavities, is tooth decay that is seen in infants and children less than 3 years old and is caused by frequent and prolonged exposure of a child's teeth to sweet liquids.
Bacteria in the mouth use these sugars as food. Then they produce acids that breakdown tooth structure, causing a cavity. Each time a child drinks sugary liquids, acids attack the teeth for 20 minutes or longer. After many attacks, the teeth can decay.
Many sweet liquids including breast milk, formula, fruit juice, and sodas can cause problems. Particularly harmful for the child is putting the child to bed with a drink that contains high amounts of sugar. The child will often fall asleep with the drink resting in their mouth, thus bathing the teeth in the sugary liquid the bacteria need to cause cavities.
Other feeding habits that can be harmful are giving a child a pacifier dipped in honey, sucking on sugar cane and repetitive use of a no-spill training sippy cup. Baby bottle tooth decay often occurs in the upper front teeth but other teeth may also be affected.
The two main components of teeth, enamel and dentin, are thinner in baby teeth so cavities or decay spreads faster than in permanent teeth. Thus, coating the teeth in sugary liquids for extended periods of time accelerates the development of cavities.
When infants and toddlers experience severe tooth decay extensive dental restorations or extractions are necessary to prevent pain and maintain oral health. If the decay reaches the inside of the tooth, the pulp, a baby root canal needs to be done, followed by the placement of a stainless steel crown.
Since baby bottle tooth decay usually affects the front teeth the final treatment with stainless steel crowns often results in an unesthetic appearance.
The good news is that decay is preventable. Some preventive measures to follow include:
- Infants should not be put to sleep with a bottle/sippy cup.
- Consumption of juices from a bottle should be avoided. When juices are offered, they should be from a cup.
- An oral health consultation visit within six months of eruption of the first tooth and no later than 12 months of age is recommended to educate parents and provide anticipatory guidance for prevention of dental disease.
- Oral hygiene measures should be implemented by the time of eruption of the first primary tooth. After each feeding, wipe the baby's gums with a clean gauze pad. Begin brushing your child's teeth when the first tooth erupts. Clean and massage gums in areas that remain toothless, and begin flossing when the first tooth contact is present. With the eruption of the first teeth, clean your child's gum with a soft infant toothbrush. For children less than 2 years old, use only a smear of fluoridated toothpaste. For children age 2 and above, a pea-sized amount of fluoridated toothpaste should be used.
Baby teeth play an important role in the development of children's speech, eruption, and alignment of permanent teeth. Baby teeth also keep a space in the jaw for the adult teeth. If a baby tooth is lost too early, the teeth beside it may drift into the empty space. When it's time for the adult teeth to come in, there may not be enough room. This can make the teeth crooked or crowded.
In general, healthy baby teeth will result in healthy permanent teeth.