Parents are heading online every day to try and find a bulk bill dentist in Frankston for children. A great number of them are calling about many of the same small group of problems with which their kids need help. While there are always some unique cases, many kids are going to the dentists with similar issues:
1. Cavities
Known in the professional dentistry world as tooth decay, cavities really are enemy number 1 when it comes to kids’ dentistry. For many parents, there’s a kind of perfect storm that affects their kids’ teeth, attacked on one side by the onslaught of junk food, candy, soft sugary drinks, starchy snack foods that get caught in their teeth and ambushed on the other side by kids themselves not taking the time to brush and floss as they should.
Lots of kids are either too impatient and thus brush enough to make it look as though they’ve done a decent job but leaving the worst where only a close inspection would see. Parents too are not supervising their kids closely enough during teeth brushing time. Younger kids are especially affected when they are brushing alone without the fine motor skills and grip needed to get the job done really well.
2. Emergency Treatment
Kids are among the most common recipients of emergency dental procedures including repairing chipped and broken teeth, among other things. Kids often play rough outdoors, chasing each other, running around and whatnot, and accidents happen. What’s more, in Australia, they play sports that are inviting teeth to be knocked out — Aussie Rules, Rugby, Cricket, and more, and often without protective gear when they’re just messing around in a local park or playground.
3. Sensitive Teeth
Children also commonly experience sensitive teeth because of various issues, some normal and some brought on by childhood disorders. For example, it’s quite normal for there to be sensitivity when their permanent teeth are coming through. Another discomfort, however, might be caused by psychological/physical issues like teeth grinding, as well as poor habits like the over-consumption of soft drinks that erode the enamel and create cavities.
Some kids also end up needing orthodontic treatments, including multiple operations, teeth removal, braces, and retainers that can cause considerable discomfort in their formative years, not to mention social awkwardness.
4. Gaps in Teeth
Kids who excessively suck their thumbs in their infant years, or who are given a pacifier to calm them down are prone to gaps in their front teeth. It’s especially prevalent in kids who were allowed to keep sucking their thumb or using a pacifier past the toddler age. The gaps in their teeth can cause problems later, including issues with chewing, and even speech in some cases.
5. Fear of the Dentist
It’s quite hard to find any child who actually enjoys going to the dentist, regardless of how friendly and/or competent the dentist and their support staff are. It’s even at the point where kids would prefer to go to school than the dentist! Dislike of the dentist is common, but genuine fear is less so. Kids are exposed to a lot of negativity when it comes to dentists — other kids teasing them about drilling, pulling teeth, etc. — and the mouth is also very sensitive to pain.
Some kids may have had a genuinely traumatic experience, or perhaps just resent the dentist for compelling them to wear braces and retainers which can be a source of embarrassment. However it happens, fear of the dentist is ubiquitous in kids.
Knowing the problems your kids might have with the dentist is the first positive step to trying to make sure that they don’t manifest into anything more serious.
