Having a smile that is healthy and white is much easier today than it was in the not too distant past. However, a basic understanding of your teeth is necessary in order to get your teeth looking their best.
You may find this difficult to believe, but our teeth have not changed for thousands of years. Archaeologists digging in the frozen north have recently discovered the grave of an Eskimo child many hundreds of years old. And as you may have guessed, due to the climate, the child was nearly perfectly preserved.
With the use of the imaging equipment we have at our disposal today, researchers were able to observe a complete set of adult teeth just waiting below the child’s baby teeth. This gave us a bit of insight into the way teeth were formed many hundreds of years ago – little if anything has changed.
Everyone of us is born owning two complete sets of teeth in our jaw – just like the Eskimo child. The first set of teeth we see in the mouth of a child are called the primary or “baby teeth.” These teeth appear around the age of 6 months.
These baby teeth could almost be considered our “practice teeth.”
The primary function of the baby teeth is as placeholders for the adult or permanent teeth which are soon to follow. We begin to see the adult teeth pushing through in most instances around 6 years of age.
Although as we mentioned earlier the baby teeth were used a placeholders, they do have other important roles to play. These primary teeth function to aid us in learning to speak as well as you guessed it – helping us to learn to chew.
Although you probably don’t remember what they looked like, your first teeth to appear were most likely your four front teeth. And what a beautiful shade of white they were. Likewise, when your permanent teeth shoved your primary teeth out of the way, they too were a translucent, beautiful white.
Regardless whether your child has a full set of baby teeth or just the first little pretty one, it is imperative that you start him or her down the road to good dental heath.
You can do this by teaching your child the importance of brushing as soon as that first tooth appears. You need to know and to communicate to your child that it is never too early to begin practicing good dental health.
Most parents may be unaware of this but your child’s first tooth is just as susceptible to decay as is her adult teeth. A common condition seen in infants is what’s called “baby bottle decay.
” This condition is most often the result of sugars in the liquids that your child may be consuming. It is therefore important that you have your child learn to drink from a cup as soon as possible.
You should also guard against allowing your child unlimited access to sweetened beverages. If you must provide your child with sweetened beverages, do so in moderation.
Another thing you should guard against is allowing your child to roam around with her cup. Provide water for your child if she is thirsty between mealtimes.
This will teach your child that water is the healthier choice and will also serve to reduce the incidence of tooth decay.
By being vigilant and habitual with the care of your child’s teeth at an early age, you are teaching her healthy habits that she will carry with her for a lifetime and will insure that she will retain the healthy white smile she was born with.
Author: Debbie Parkinson
Source: ezinearticles.com
Debbie Parkinson is a free lance writer researching and writing on various topics. Debbie’s passions are health and pets. Learn more about providing shelter for your pets by visiting her website on Large Dog Houses and Insulated Dog Houses
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