National Children’s Dental Health Month underway at Macon Pediatric Dentistry

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)- February’s the month of love! Loving that smile. It’s National Children’s Dental Health Month to raise awareness about the importance of oral health.

According to the wallet-hub best and worst dental health report, about 15 percent of children aged two through seventeen have not seen a dentist in the past year.

Dental Hygienist Teresa Harden explains how this year’s awareness celebration and year-round attention to children’s dental health, is important to prevent tooth decay which is the most common chronic disease in children.

“National Dental Hygiene Month is an opportunity for children to learn about how to take care of their teeth. We try to bring them in six months after the eruption of their first baby tooth, and also it builds a relationship with the parent and the child,” says Harden.

She also explains that parents often do not know how to take care of their children teeth.

“They don’t know the right nutrition that they are supposed to be taking in daily to help prevent tooth decay,” says Harden.

A checkup costs $90-$137 on average, while a filling can go for $230-$313, and a crown typically is more than $1,200 according to wallet hub reports.

“When parents come here with a child. We show them what they can be doing at home properly in order to prevent bacteria and cavities,” says Dental Hygienist Hollie Rodgers.

How to care for children’s teeth

Rodgers also said it’s best to get checkups now in order to prevent pricey dental work.

“They need to know as early as they can, we like to see them in the first year, that way problems don’t occur. You know we see children come in for their first checkup, and they already have cavities,” says Rodgers.

Good oral hygiene practices such as brushing with fluoride toothpaste can help keep children from getting cavities.

Rodgers says to remember proper daily oral care. Brush two times a day for two minutes, limiting sweet sugary snacks, soft drinks, and sports drinks, and visit a dentist once every six months.