{"id":209,"date":"2019-06-17T13:16:10","date_gmt":"2019-06-17T13:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smilemorekidz.com\/blog\/?p=209"},"modified":"2019-06-25T13:20:34","modified_gmt":"2019-06-25T13:20:34","slug":"put-dental-visit-on-your-back-to-school-list","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smilemorekidz.com\/blog\/2019\/06\/17\/put-dental-visit-on-your-back-to-school-list\/","title":{"rendered":"Put \u201cDental Visit\u201d on Your Back-to-School List!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Along with an annual physical, new\nclothes and backpacks, a visit to the dentist helps ensure that your child\u2019s\neducation and development won\u2019t be interrupted by oral health problems. \nAfter all, dental disease is the most prevalent childhood disease! \nBack-to-school dental care can help prevent dental emergencies and missed\nvaluable school days, while giving kids more confident smiles\u2026\u2026all year long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

 \n  In a scientific study published in the Journal of Pediatrics, it was\nconcluded that dental problems were significantly associated with reductions in\nschool performance and psychosocial well-being. Children with undiagnosed\ndental problems and infections were more likely to have problems at school, miss\nschool and were less likely to do all required homework.  This was\nprevalent with children 14 years and younger, since this age group seldom\ncomplains to their parents about dental pain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Dental malocclusion (crooked teeth) were also\nassociated with shyness, unhappiness, feeling of worthlessness, and reduced\nfriendliness. The effects of dental malocclusion were largest for adolescents\nbetween 15 and 17 years.  The study concluded that preventing and treating\ndental problems and improving dental health may benefit a child\u2019s academic\nachievement, cognitive and psychosocial development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Here are some things\nthat can be done to ensure your child\u2019s teeth and gums are healthy and that\nthey grow up to have a more positive and enjoyable experience with their dental\nhome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Healthy smiles start at home.  <\/strong>Serve\nas a good role model by practicing good dental hygiene habits yourself. \nMake sure your children brush and floss daily.  A diet light on sugary\nsnacks and drinks and rich in raw fruits and vegetables goes a long way towards\nmaintaining good oral and overall health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schedule routine dental exam and\nprofessional cleanings 2x\/year with a Pediatric Dentist. <\/strong>\nFood and decay-causing plaque are easily trapped in between teeth and in the\ndeep grooves of the chewing surfaces of teeth.  Even if your child brushes\nand flosses well, it\u2019s important that he\/she has a professional cleaning to\nprevent cavities from forming in those hard-to-clean areas.  A thorough\ndental exam can catch early decay, preventing pain, infections and more\nexpensive procedures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Best time\nto schedule a dental appointment with a Pediatric dentist<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Time of\nday can make or break your child\u2019s appointment. It\u2019s important for a child of\nany age who\u2019s used to a nap to not schedule during naptime. If your child is\nalways cranky after waking up, factor that in too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For older\nchildren, avoid cramming in a dentist appointment right after day camp or\nschool. Not all kids have the energy to do that.  I will have parents who\nwant to do very elaborate operative (fillings) work after school because that\u2019s\nwhen the kids can come out. But if the child has already been exhausted or had\na bad day or had tests, they just may not have the stamina or positive energy\nto make it through the appointment successfully.  For the convenience of\nour patients, we have Saturday hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make One\nChild a Model<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve\nscheduled back-to-back appointments for your children, there\u2019s a simple way to\ndecide who goes first: Choose the child who\u2019s had the most positive experiences\nat the dentist.  Every child is going to be a little bit different in\ntheir temperament about how they approach a visit.  you generally want the\nones first who are more successful because the others get to see how it goes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leave Your\nAnxiety at the Door<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your\nheart races at the very thought of the dentist, your child can probably tell.\nKids pick up on parents\u2019 anxiety.  It\u2019s important with kids, especially at\n4, 5 and 6, because I believe the phobic adults are the ones who had bad\nexperiences when they were that age. Today a child\u2019s dental experience can\nactually be focused around being more fun and engaging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nyounger your kids are, the more you need to be aware of how you\u2019re\ncommunicating with them. For example, if your child asks about getting a cavity\nfilled, don\u2019t say, \u201cIt will only hurt for a little bit.\u201d Instead, encourage\nyour child to ask the dentist.  With any child, you want them to be able\nto feel successful at accomplishing a good visit and link that positive feeling\nwith the idea that their teeth are strong and healthy so they have that message\ngoing forward for the rest of their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep Cool\nIf Your Child Won\u2019t Cooperate<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If your\nchild gets upset during his\/her visit, the worst thing you can do is swoop them\nout of the chair and leave.  The next visit is going to be harder. \nYou still have to help them get through another visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  \nAllow the doctor to assess why your child is acting out. Are they truly afraid,\nor are they trying to test the situation?  One of the reasons I think a 4,\n5 or 6-year-old gets upset is because they think they\u2019re going to be asked to\ndo something they can\u2019t be successful at.  They\u2019re in an environment they\nfeel they can\u2019t control and that makes them upset, so we try to break it down\ninto small steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

  If\nyour child\u2019s dentist allows parents to be present during the visit, work as a\nteam with your dentist to keep the visit going. Let the dentist lead the\nconversation and advise you when its most appropriate for you to help if\nneeded, while still allowing the dentist and your child to build a good\nrelationship.  Give the dentist every opportunity to turn the visit\naround. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take\na Card (or Three) on Your Way Out.  In fact, our office has magnets you\ncan put on your refrigerator door<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accidents\ncan happen whether your child is in sports camp, gym class or just walking down\nthe street. In case of emergency, make sure your child\u2019s teachers and coaches\nhave all the medical contact information they need \u2013 including your dentist\u2019s\nnumber. Grab business cards for your wallet, your child\u2019s backpack and your\nschool\u2019s files.   Parents should be very aware of accidents and make sure\nthat wherever they go that they bring the number of their dentist so that if a\nchild has an accident, they can certainly call the office.  In fact, we\ntreat dental related school accidents all the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make sure your kids start their\nschool year right.  Give your local Pediatric dentist a call.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Darren Tong is a pediatric\ndentist who lives in Old Tappan with his wife, Dr. Mariliza Lacap and their 5\nchildren.  They are both graduates of Columbia University School of Dental\nand Oral Surgery and are owners of Smile More Dentistry and Smile More\nKidz.  140 Oak Tree Road, Tappan, NY.  They can be reached at\n845-359-1763.  SmileMoreDentist.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Along with an annual physical, new clothes and backpacks, a visit to the dentist helps ensure that your child\u2019s education and development won\u2019t be interrupted by oral health problems.  After all, dental disease is the most prevalent childhood disease!  Back-to-school dental care can help prevent dental emergencies and missed valuable school days, while giving kids […]<\/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":[],"class_list":["post-209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nPut \u201cDental Visit\u201d on Your Back-to-School List! - Smile More Kidz Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smilemorekidz.com\/blog\/2019\/06\/17\/put-dental-visit-on-your-back-to-school-list\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Put \u201cDental Visit\u201d on Your Back-to-School List! 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