3 Times When Fluoride Might Help Your Child’s Teeth

Posted November 17, 2020

When your child stays diligent in keeping their teeth clean every day, protecting their teeth from things like sugar, and visiting their dentists regularly, they can avoid a lot of potential oral health problems. Sometimes, however, successfully protecting their teeth may require a little bit of additional help, such as the application of fluoride treatment to give their natural tooth enamel a boost in strength and integrity. Today, we explore three times when fluoride might be a good idea for your child’s teeth, and how it can help protect their smiles from more serious concerns.

1. When they haven’t been brushing consistently

The point of fluoride treatment is to strengthen the enamel that surrounds your child’s healthy, natural teeth. This enamel is made of several different minerals, which form highly resilient strands to shield their main tooth structures from harmful oral bacteria. Brushing these bacteria and the plaque they form off of their teeth each day is essential to your child avoiding plaque buildup and its potential consequences. That includes the weakening of their tooth enamel due to excessive bacteria buildup and the harmful substances, like acids, that they produce. If your child doesn’t brush their teeth thoroughly and consistently enough, then they may benefit from fluoride treatment for additional protection as they learn to master the basics of good dental hygiene.

2. When they haven’t visited the dentist in a while

Good dental hygiene at home isn’t the only necessary part of a keeping your child’s smile healthy on a consistent basis. It also takes a regular schedule of professional checkups and cleanings at the dentist’s office, during which the dentist can more thoroughly clean your child’s teeth and check for any signs of developing concerns. If your child missed their last dental checkup and cleaning appointment, or it’s been delayed, then fluoride might be a necessary precaution to help their tooth enamel regain its strength faster.

3. When their teeth start to feel sensitive

Even if your child has gotten a lot better at practicing dental hygiene and they’ve attended every checkup and cleaning on time, there may still be instances when their tooth enamel grows weak due to other factors. One of the first signs of this may be sensitivity in one or more of their teeth, which might be minor at first, when the enamel is still relatively strong. Applying fluoride to the weakened enamel can reduce the sensitivity in their teeth by bolstering the protective mineral layer around them. This also lowers their risks of developing tooth decay and cavities, which occur when tooth enamel grows too weak and compromised to prevent bacteria from reaching their main tooth structure.

Learn if fluoride can help your child’s teeth

The ability to strengthen your child’s tooth enamel against things like harmful oral bacteria can make fluoride treatment highly beneficial under several different circumstances. To learn more, schedule an appointment by calling Pediatric Dental Care at Casa Linda in Dallas, TX today at 214-321-4880. We proudly serve patients who live around Casa Linda and all surrounding Dallas communities.