Teeth

Hi, I am a mother of 2. My daughter's teeth didn't mineralize correctly so she had lots of problems. Especially with her molars. We took her to a pediatric dentist to address the issue. The capped her molars and told us if they didn't, her teeth would chip away. The first 2 dentists we had didn't catch it. She is 9 now and her adult teeth are looking good.

you can have her rinse with ACT fluoride rinse at night before bed--comes in different flavors, and gives her alittle more fluoride for the outside of her teeth--just brush teeth,rinse with ACT, then go to bed--the fluoride helps to harden the enamel--to prevent cavities--. I'm a dental hygienist---good luck--be careful of juice intake, carbonated drinks(the fizz is hard on their teeth) always "swish and swallow" water after eating or having high sugar drinks or food--always brush before bedtime!!!!
S.

Ok here is the deal on calcium intake it is only going to help teeth that are still developing, not teeth that are already erupted, flouride will help teeth that are already developed in the mouth, as we drink flouradated water it washes over the teeth and helps to put a protective layer on our teeth. Too much sugar (artificial ie pop candy carbs etc or natural ie juice etc) constantly washing over the teeth mixes with bacteria in our mouths and produces acid which produces tooth decay. It's all about how long teeth are exposed to this acid. If your kids want candy it is better that they eat it quickly and are done with it, than making it last for a long period of time.
I would consult with your dentist, if your not getting help there then consult with a Pedadontist (specialises in children), depending on your daughters age it could be many things. There is something called Enamelplasty imperfecta, this is where the enamel is very weak and chips off easily. Consult a dentist. Good luck
J. (Dental hygenist)

My daughter's teeth are the same way- she also is night time grinder. She hasn't lost any baby teeth yet so I'm hoping when her permanent teeth come in they're alot better. The only thing I can I've done wrong is she was on the bottle and sippy cup way to long because I was nervous about her spilling. Other than that we've really tried hard to take care of her teeth. My daughter is 6.5 and borderline for needing a crown. I'm just praying her primary teeth fall out soon and her new ones are stronger and better. But if you look at hereditary my daughter's father has horrible teeth as well. Whearas mine are strong as a horse and healthy.

I would take her to the doctor and get her nutrition levels checked. Is her body getting the proper nutrition.

How old is she?
How long has this been going on?
Does anyone in your family or your hubby's have problems with teeth? Thyroid?
It could be hereditary?

Milk can sometimes not be good. Are you giving her some kind of calcium supplement? She might be drinking a lot of milk, but her body might not be absorbing it properly.

I have hyper-parathyroidisn. My body was stealing the calcium from my bones and putting into my bloodstream. I didn't find out until I was 36 years old. I have more fillings than teeth. When I was pregnant it just got worse.

Just some things to check into,

Wish you luck!

J.

My 24 year old son in Med School has the same problem. I nursed him and he drinks alot of milk and water. He is extremely healthy and fit. He takes no medication. The dentist says that he also grinds his teeth at night. His teeth are chipping away and very brittle. He is afraid he will need false teeth. We had a mouth guard made for him at night to wear but he doesn't like to wear it. I would love any ideas or helpful hints too.

A., yah who knows what causes this, ive heard teeth and cavities are inherited, ive also heard brushing a babys teeth may remove the enamel, ive also heard juices can do it at ayoung age, ive also heard formulas can do it, ive also heard medicines can do it, too, no for sure answer, just if they are totally ruined, the adult teeth may come in and things could be fine, seems like my husband when a baby his mom would talk of his teeth got really bad, and his adult teeth are fine, so i dont know, maybe be prepared to give her dental help when it is needed, hope all goes well, sorry this may not be helpful, D. s

Hi A.. This won't make you feel any better, but some people are just pre-disposed to have bad teeth. My husband has always taken wonderful care of his teeth, brushing two to three times a day, using mouth wash at least once or twice a day, but he also has very weak teeth. My dad is the same way, just has always had bad teeth - through no fault of his own. Hopefully this isn't the case for your daughter. Good luck with figuring it out!

How old is your daughter, and how much fluoride is she getting? Too much can be just as harmful to the teeth as too little.

Any chance she had alot of antibiotics when she was younger? or have an extreamly high temp when she was young? I have seen both scenes. Two from antibiotics and one from high temp. The other thing I've seen is a child who was breast fed to long and developed nursers carry. The sugers sat on the teeth to long. If any one of those could be the case ask a professional. hope this helps you out.

Do you live in town and get water that has floride in it. We don't and we always gave our kids floride tablets and they don't have one filling and the three sons are in their 20 and 30's. Had great luck with it. Your dentist can write a prescription for it. It's worth it.

I'm a retired teacher and was always a concerned mom. Good luck
J.

Monitor her intake of high fructose corn syrup. It's in almost everything we eat that is processed.

A.- My son had soft teeth. He got the teeth they loose last sealed and everyday and night he swished with the generic ACT. After that his teeth have been fine! Prior to completing the seals I believe he had 5 cavities, none after it. He is now 12 adn his permanent teeth seem stronger but he still uses the extra flouride. Also if flouride is not in the water the dentist can prescribe flouride tablets. Good luck.

Grinding them will wear them down. Have you talked to your dentist about getting her a guard for night times?
Also if she drinks a lot of juice that will wear down her enamel.

Hi A.,

Talk to a dentist about getting a "tray", like the ones guys wear when in sports, like football. I have seen that done n it helps. Maybe you can rig it up so she isn't able to take it out at night. Hope this helps.

J. A

celiac disease can cause dammage to teeth.. maybe it is not this but may be worth looking into (blood test). more info at www.celiac.com
good luck

Hi A., I have worked as a chair-side dental assistant for 10 years. We have a large childen patient base, so I have seen many "little mouths". My first question is, how old is your daughter. Are her teeth looking worse due to the chipping & grinding or has your dentist advised you that she has decay present. Many children grind their teeth when they sleep. It's their way of possibly releaving tention. Also, sometimes if children have had high fevers when their teeth are developing the calcium is laid down incorrectly and resulting in weaker tooth structure. Also, milk can be very harmful if it is still on the teeth while a child sleeps. I've seen pedo teeth(or baby teeth) that were all decayed due to a child going to bed every night with a sippy cup or bottle of milk. The only drink after a child brushes before bed should be water. I'm not sure if decay is present or not but if her teeth are weak your dentist can recommend a flouride rinse before bed time to strenghthen her teeth. We always recommended "ACT" flouride rinse, sold at any Walmart, Target etc. I would call to schedule her for a quick visit with your dentist even if she's not due for her 6 mo check up. I've seen many problems in children arise in between check ups. I hope I've helped you!

Check out the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry

http://www.aapd.org/pediatricinformation/faq.asp

Lots of info there and you might be able to find what you need.

I've always had what they call soft teeth. My brothers would brush their teeth and be fine and I would do the same maybe even more and still end up with cavities. As an adult now I use a
prescription toothpaste. You use it like regular toothpaste but no rinsing afterwards. Maybe see if there's something like this for kids. Also for sure switch her to an electric tooth brush it will make a big difference. On top of all this I've always had a huge sweet tooth. She may be getting more sugar than you know about. I was was horrible at sneaking the sweets. My Mom would faint if she knew how much sugar i use to sneak in.
Hope that helps,
K.

I'll echo what Jill said about milk sometimes not being good. We have been taught ever since grade school that milk is such a great source of calcium. Sure, it has 20% of your daily RDA right on the carton, but calcium is not absorbed with protein, which is what milk is. I've heard that broccoli and especially almonds have high sources of calcium...higher than milk! It may be worth checking into some alternate sources of calcium.

Hi My DD had really great teeth when she was born but they deteriated(sp?) also. I would check you floride level in your water.Thats was our problem that had she has "soft" teeth.
Hope that helps!
C.