One Year Old to the Dentist?

I'm a mother of 4 and I've always brought my children to the dentist at age 3. All has gone well! K.

Wait until he is 3. My dentist recommends waiting until 3, because they can understand a little bit, keep their mouths open, etc. Just keep his teeth clean, and go in if you suspect a problem. My daughter will be visiting the dentist for the first time in the spring! My son is 5 and LOVES going to the dentist. Good luck!

Hello J. I having two children of my own. I actually started taking my children to the dentist @ 3 yrs of age. That way they are able to understand more of what is going on and sit in the dental chair much longer. So goodluck hope this informations was useful!

I don't think it is too early. We went to a pediatric dentist in Brookfield, WI. I think the website is
www.thefunkidsdentist.com

they offer free check ups for kids under 18 months old.

good luck!

My ped. said that kids really don't have to go to the dentist until they are 3, and it is only to get them use to it. Until then the doctor checks teeth at their check up and it is really just dentists trying to make money. She said some doctors have even gone to dental conventions to talk about it. As long as you are taking care of their teeth and not noticing any problems, you should be ok to wait.

Our dentist suggested 3 years so I waited until then with both of my boys.

ive heard one, but as long as your pediatritian or doctor is taking a look at the teeth during checkups, its probably ok, unless you can find a dentist that will take a kid under 3. ive had that problem where all the dentists ive asked say they dont take kids until 3.

Age 3 is what our pediatric dentist suggests! I'm sure there are exceptions, but this seems to be the norm.

Our dentist recommended around age 2 or 3.

My daughter had like maybe 2 teeth at age 1 would have been pointless to go.

Because of a fall and injury to her teeth we went at age2 but they were only interested in the injury not in a real exam or cleaning and told me to bring her back at age3 for a typical regular apppointment.

So I've been taking my daughter since age3!

My dentist said they don't need to come in before 3 unless they have an obvious problem.

I asked my dentist this question at my last check-up. She suggested I bring my daughter (currently 9 months) along with me to my next checkup and she'll just do a quick look at her teeth. That way, my daughter starts getting used to the idea, but don't really need to schedule her own appointment until 2 or 3. Basically, when she'll have a fighting chance of getting the child to sit still. But my daughter has yet to show any sign of her first tooth, so we'll see when she'll have something for the dentist to even look at! :)

I asked my dentist this very question and she said not until they are about 3 or 4 because then they have a good portion of their teeth (molars and such) and are able to reason more.

I have a 13 month old son. Our doctor said the earliest a child needs to go to the dentist is age 3. He's got 5 kids of his own, and I really trust his opinions. Hope this helps!

I used to work for a dentist before I became a stay at home mom. We were often asked this question. They normally prefer you to wait until they are about 3 years old or have all of their baby teeth in. If there is a problem however and your child is complaining of a tooth hurting, by all means take he/she in for a check up. But really before they are 3 it is hard for them to do an exam and take x-rays. Every office is a little different so I would just ask them the next time you are in for you check up. Good Luck

Each dentist office kinds of determines when they want to see your kids...anywhere from first toothe to three years old. I personally took my kids at age 3 and was told by my dentist this is an appropriate age. Basically the kids temperment determines the appropriate age...they need to be calm enough to sit through a cleaning and x-rays if necessary...otherwise, you are just basically taking them to see the dentist and the dentist cannot do much if the child is crying or wont sit still.

It depends on the dentist too. Some will not take them until they are about 3 or there is a problem before that.

You should take them once they start getting teeth!! I know a really good one in the Omaha area if you are interested!

I think my son was 4. He sat well enough to make it through the whole exam. My daughter on the other hand is a monkey (lol)... she may need to go later.
I know earlier is better, but I want for my kids to sit well. It's pointless if they're not going to sit for it. Maybe have your child go with you to yours so he knows what they will do. My son did that with me. I don't bring my daughter because she's all over the place. Each child is different.
~SR

I am a former dental assistant that has worked in both pediatrics and adult dentistry. When I was in pediatrics, I can't tell you the number of children that had full mouth tooth decay at the age of 1. These children were obviously being given juice and/or pop in their bottles and going to bed with bottles of milk at night. If you brush their teeth and don't have any concerns it isn't out of the question to wait until three, but 1-1 1/2 years is a good age. A visit for a 1 year old is very inexpensive so they are definitely not just in it for the money. Most of the time we didn't even charge for 1 year olds depending on how much they would let us look. If a dentist tells you older than the age of 3 it is because they don't want to see the child and you should find a pediatric dentist or a dentist that will see him.

They really don't do much until they are 4 or 5. They would talk about how not to let juice or milk linger around in a sippy cup and limit pop or not give at all. They'll discuss brushing or if they think your child may have issues later on. My first born has good spacing on all teeth and he said they will keep clean well. My second is tight spacing and may have an issue with getting in between teeth.

You may want to bring him in at age two so he has that experience and to see what they have to say.

Our dentist told us 18 months, however he wouldn't open his mouth when the dentist was in the room, so it was pretty pointless. I now will not take him back until he is 4ish unless there is a problem.

Both my pediatrician and my dentist (who is fairly conservative) recommended age 3, unless there is a problem before that time.

my brother in law is a dentist and he has said that any time between 2 and 3 is a good time to start unless there is a concern. And as soon as there are teeth you should begin brushing them (or use a clean damp washcloth with your finger--watch out for biting!)

I started about 2 with our daughter just by taking her and letting her watch. Our dentist would try each time to see what Jenna would let her do. It worked really well because Jenna has no fear of the dentist. No my son who is 21 mo went last mo for the first time and did not go as well. We will do the same were we take him each time we go and see what they can get him to do!
A.

My dentist suggested that 3 years old would be a good age to start.

J., I have to say take your 1 year-old to the dentist. I waited until my DD was 3 for her first visit. Turns out she had bad enamel and has quite a bit of decay. As a result, she will need ALOT of dental work (caps/pulpectomies). My heart breaks for her =* ( She is going to require anesthesia in a hospital (she has terrible anxiety and is very strong!) and the bill will be thousands $$$. I think non-pediatric dentists say 3 because they don't want to /aren't trained or equipped to deal with small children. My ped. dentist said we should have brought her in when she got her first teeth. I think she may have also had less anxiety about the dentist if she had someone in her mouth at a younger age. Good luck with whatever you decide!

Age 3 is when my kids started to see the dentist. That was what was suggested by their peds dr. Actually, unless there are severe problems, my kids's peds dentist will not see kids til age 3.

I just went this morning for the first time with my 2 1/2 year old and 4 year old. We had our reasons for waiting, but I am glad we did. They were not scared at all and they actually had a great time. I asked the dentist your exact question, and she said when you think they will be cooperative and as long as you don't have questions, this is a great time. If you have concerns, don't hesitate to go earlier! Good luck!
J.

Our dentist said 3 years unless we have concerns. She said as long as we're brushing and taking care of the teeth it's fine. We took my son at 3 and all they did was talk to him about his teeth, brushed them and showed him how, flossed them and showed him how. The first appointment is just to make them comfortable. He just had his second appointment at 4 years and they did do x-rays this time and again brushed his teeth and flossed them and showed him how. Also answered any questions he had. My daughter is 20 months old and we're planning to wait until she's 3 years old to bring her.

The "moms' group" where I work has talked about this a lot... with similar stories as I see you have received. Probably just depends on what you are comfortable with and the personality of your kids. In my case, I have two girls now 2.5 and almost 4. For my dental insurance coverage I had to decide at reenrollment time whether to insure them or not. When they started climbing a lot and being really active I priced what an emergency dental visit would cost, versus how much it would cost to insure them. It was almost a wash, but when I considered there were two fo them, and each of them could have problems, I decided to get the insurance. Then, I figured we might as well start going to the dentist regularly.

Yesterday I took them for a check-up for the third time. We're going to a pediatric dentist in Wayzata. The first two times (a year ago, and six months ago) we weren't successful in getting them to do much more than have their teeth counted. This time I really wanted to prepare them for going, so we started reading a story about going to the dentist (it's in a book about "first experiences" - can't remember title or author, but it is a Usborne book). My younger daughter asked for that story almost every night before bed in the week leading up to our dental visit. Yesterday she did really well, and the hygenist did manage to clean her teeth and "paint" flouride on them - also she sat so well for the dentist to look at all her teeth. It was really cool to see! My older daughter has Down syndrome, and we really weren't able to convince her she should sit and have any "tools" put in her mouth, but she did look at them. I'm encouraged that she'll be more receptive next time, and if not at least we are building up to it. Both the girls loved the fun toys in the pediatric dentist's waiting room!

Good luck!

My husband works with a pediatric dentist and they recommend around 1 year. We took our son in around 18 months I think and he had all his baby teeth (except 2y molars). They did a quick check and gave him a toothbrush and stickers. I think it cost less than $10, so I wouldn't say they're in it for the money. It's one of those things where most kids are getting a well-child visit, but they will occasionally be able to identify a problem and catch it early. And I think there are psychological benefits to taking your child to the dentist when they don't have any problems. They don't build a negative association with going there and it will be a lot easier on you.

That is the question of the year. When I asked the pediatrician, I was told 3 years old. When I asked the regular dentist he said 5 years old when they can sit still. Well I took my son after he turned 3 and the hygenist said she would try to look at his mouth but if he didn't cooperate they would cancel and wait till he was 5. Well he did great and they found lots of cavities and decay on his baby teeth. He ended up going to a pediatric dentist and now $5,000 later my son's baby teeth are fixed. The pediatric dentist said he likes to see them at 1 year old. The problem with my son's teeth was a bacteria that went thru his mouth and damaged his teeth. If we would have taken him at 1 this might have been caught earlier and the damagae would have been less. So based on what I went thru with my son, take your child to the pediatric dentist early.

We took our son at 15 monhts. I was given so many different ages it was really annoying. It's good to get them use to going. They don't do much but take a look and see if there is any problems or issues.

He screamed and cried but they say they are use to that.

My son was more concerned about opening the unlocked toy cabinets so it wasn't a complete waste of time.

I think the insurance company dictates the age more than the actual dentist does.

Some folks say you should take them when they start getting their first teeth, but I personally think that's a bit young. They should be able to understand what's going on and not be scared of some stranger poking around in their mouth =) I started taking my boys when they were 3 and it worked out great.

Our family dentist said 3 years old was the best time to start brining them. Prior to the first appointment, have your child go with you to your appointment so they can just "check things out" before their appointment. Hope this helps!

Our pediatric dentist told us that the rule of thumb is around 6 months after the baby gets the first tooth. We always plan ours for around our babies first birthday. With our 18 month old, our dentist caught a tongue tie that our pediatrician had not. So I am glad we chose to start with the dentist when we did.

just went to the dentist last week and he said between 2-3 years old.

Hi J., my daughter was just a little over a year old when she went for her first visit. But she busted her front tooth on the coffee table and it seemed loose. So i was scared and took her. She ended up being fine. But i'm glad i started going that early she has got so use to going now she loves our trips to see him. And she reminds me all the time when she do to go again. I hope this helps!

We have four children and were always told about age 4 is when they can start getting their teeth cleaned. However, Lily our youngest has gone along to dental cleanings for the older kids - just not gotten her teeth cleaned. :-)

I wanted to take my son at one year but his insurance didn't start paying until age 2. I guess it depends on if your insurance covers it - if that isn't a big deal then I also heard that one was the magic number.

I called around to every dentist in M. city to see what the consensus was. Almost every place said 3yrs unless there were any concerns or obvious issues. There were a couple that said earlier, but none that said later. I was worried that I was behind (mine were 13 mo at the time), but I felt better & have decided to wait until they are older.

My own dentist suggested 3. I decided to take our son to a local Pediatric dentist that is well liked and they actually recommend around age 1. Obviously there is not much they will do at that age, but they can make sure everything is developing OK in there. Even at 3 I was worried about how well my son would do, but he did great! The Pediatric clinic is definitely the way to go. What's cool is that it's covered 100% on our insurance, whereas our own dentist is not. I wish I would have brought him in earlier than age 3, but they did not make me feel bad that I had not. I actually just read on their website about the 1 year suggestion. If you're thinking it's still too soon, compromise and take him in at 2! Personally, for my son I think he would have been ready around then, at least for the basics. I don't think he would have cooperated with the x-rays...but you never know. Good luck with your decision and have fun!

J.,
I took my daughter b/c one of her baby teeth seemed to have just chipped off one day. (I can't remember any trauma.) My dentist said that as long as she did not show any signs of pain or swelling to come back at age 3. I took my twins with me to the dentist when I went to get them comfortable with the dentist. She "counted" their teeth, "looked to make sure they had tongues!" and overall made the kids very comfortable. When they went for their first real check up, there were no comfort issues at all!
Good luck!
J.

Hi,
When my son was a little under 2, I asked the dental hygienist your exact question. She said around the time they are 2 1/2-3 is a good time to bring them. She said that it is a good idea to bring them with us before we actually bring them to have their teeth cleaned so they can see what will happen. It is also a good opportunity to just get a quick look at the teeth without having to do the in-depth cleaning. They showed my son all the tools, let him ride in the chair, and told him everything they were doing to my teeth. When I took him for his first trip right after he turned 3 he did great. They just recommended helping him brush his teeth to make sure all teeth are brushed well, and limit the juice. Water is best and don't let them run around with a sippy of juice all day as that contributes to tooth decay. Also, water down any juice they get and 100% juice like Juicy Juice is best. Good luck!

As long as you take your child to a Pediatric Dentist, age 13 months is exactly appropriate and good.

I believe it was age 2 or 3 when our kids first started going, definatly not before that. What our dentist suggested, and what we did, is shortly beforehand, I let them come and watch while I had my dentist appt. so they could see what it was all about and not be scared about it when it was their turn to go. Something to keep in mind for when ever you do take him.

Unless there is an emergency or specific health problem, I have always waited until 3 or 4-depending on the child's level of cooperation. It took longer for my son to be able to take it (and I still have trouble at age 7) than my daughter-who was fine at age 3. Anything earlier than that, I believe is a waste of money. We, as parents can keep their teeth sufficiently clean b/f age 3 and you wouldn't want to give a negative impression of the dentist visit.