One of the biggest misconceptions regarding babies is assuming that their dental health takes a back seat as their teeth are due to fall out anyway. This misconceived ignorance comes at great risk for babies who are very susceptible to tooth decay, infections, and resultant pain, which, due to their lack of communication, can lead to insurmountable suffering and sleepless nights. The top reason for the admittance of babies for an anesthetic procedure in the UK is for the removal of infected teeth. Here are some more top reasons to have dentists check out your baby’s oral health.

Acclimatizing to regular dental care
It is imperative to bring your babies for regular dental checkups so that from a young age, they grow used to dental healthcare and don’t adopt a misplaced phobia from these regular visits. Dental visits also inculcate the importance for oral health at an early age as these visits add monumental importance to this part of healthcare that can often be ignored.

Dietary development
As a baby grows teeth, their intake of food vastly changes from a liquid-slurry base to a more solid base of food. This reflects their ever-growing need for a complex range of nutrients, and to consume these, digestion becomes ever important for the baby. However, digestion begins at the mouth, and without oral health and proper dental care, a baby can have severe problems in food digestion. This can be further compounded by problems in chewing that can manifest as underdeveloped jaw muscles in the baby.

Infection risks
Baby mouths are also very susceptible to infections due to the lack of oral healthcare, varied diets, and their hobby of putting everything from unwashed hands to shoes in their mouth. This risk of infections is all the scarier because infections of the teeth can quickly spread to the neck or brain, at which point hospitalization becomes a necessity and needlessly risks the baby’s life. Thus, timely visits to the dentist for your baby saves them from harsh antibiotics and from pain and suffering and keeps their health at large in check.

Development of permanent teeth
Milk teeth in babies are also placeholders that influence the growth of permanent teeth. Gum health and the positioning of the coming teeth, as well as their drifting that causes painful and damaging abrasion, are all important reasons to schedule a dental visit for your baby. Lack of timely intervention can cause misalignment and permanent dental damage.

Speech development
Stutters, lisping, whistling, and vocalization of sounds and pronunciation are all impacted by the development of teeth and the mouth. Timely intervention by the dentist in observing the development of a baby’s mouth can prevent a lot of late-stage speech impediments down the line.

Esteem and social interaction
Lastly, your baby’s confidence can often bank on their early development without being picked on due to their misaligned teeth. Just like adults, babies stand at the risk of having labels and tags attached at a young age of socialization which can affect self-esteem.

This is thankfully all avoidable and is a simple call away to a renowned dental practitioner such as the Practice at Mortlake. So, schedule an appointment today on 0208 876 5398 to give your baby the best care at the hands of a team that cares!