When Should I *Actually* Take My Son to the Dentist?

My dentist told me 2 1/2 to 3 years old. But I've always brought my daugther with me to the dentist and the last visit she was 18 months and she had her sit in the chair and gave her a toothbrush for being a good girl. It was good practice.

I think 6 months is kind of ridiculous. Both my kids had their first visits at age 3. I think they started doing a little cleaning at the second visit for both kids.

We are taking our 19 month old next month. He has all but one of his teeth, so I asked what are they going to do, she said they do a "look see" to make sure everything is going all right, we are lucky to have insurance that is going to cover this appointment. I don't want him to be afraid of the dentist and plus, our pediatrician said that there is a gap between his 2 front teeth and he is going to need braces one day, I don't really want to believe that. So we are doing it to make sure everything is coming in right and get him used to the dentist.

My pediatrician told me that my daughter should start seeing a dentist at age 2. I actually just took my 2- year old to her first dentist appointment last week. (It was very difficult to find a dentist that sees children that young. Most dentists I called didn't take patients under 5 years old including my dentist). The Dentist counted and checked her teeth and did a cleaning. Whole appointment took about 10 minutes.

I took my daughter when she was two and she got her teeth early so she had all of them for a while before then. We were doing the same with the brushing. We went to a great pediatric dentist and the first visit he just really took a quick look but he was able to tell me that her pacifier use was already beginning to change the shape of her mouth and we needed to get rid of it. There is enough damage already done at this point that she'll definitely need an appliance when she's around 5 to correct it. I feel like maybe if I had taken her earlier to the dentist maybe we would have known to break it earlier and that damage may not have been done. But who knows, it could have happened when she was an infant too. I think it's a personal call. I would definitely go by 2 years old but it may still be a little early now. I deinitely recommend a pediatric dentist if you do decide to go.

Good luck!

Hi. I just took my son to his first dentist appointment - he's a smidgen over 3. It was the quickest thing I had ever seen. We were in & out of there in 20 minutes and she did do a cleaning. His 2 front teeth are really close together so I was noticing some shading issues, that's why I took him in. She was really kind and he never made a peep - it was almost fun!! Good luck to you.

A.

Hi K.,
My son was a very late teether, so I took him when he was 2 1/2. I agree that it is kind of a waste to do anything before that. Unless your son is having an issue with his teeth, there is really nothing yuou can do before that anyway. My son is 4 1/2 now and has had 2 or 3 cleanings (I can't remember), but he was also an extremely late teether and the pediatric dentist even said that around 2 or 3 is the time to take them. They can't really seal his teeth (for reduction in cavities) until the permanent ones come in-it's useless. The cleanings are good and if the dentist is good, they will notice all kinds of things about your son ie: his bite, his jaw, how his teeth will develop, etc. amd won't try and get you to get a bunch of needless services that will not be helpful until the permanent ones come in. Take care, K.

Ha ha...well I guess I would be the 'bad mom' because although I wanted to take my daughter to the dentist sooner, I didn't actually get around to it until she had to before starting kindergarten this fall. Her teeth are just fine. The dentist checked them out and did do a quick cleaning. I guess I lucked out because I have never even taken her with me when I get a check up so she can see what they do. I just sprung it on her! But she did great and wasn't afraid!

You're a better mom than most for asking instead of assuming you already know everything that's best for your kid.
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends the first visit be 6 months after the first tooth, or about 1 year to 18 months. While it appears that the dentist doesn't do much, they are experts trained to see all details in the mouths of children and since they are VERY experienced with children, it takes about 15 minutes--there is NO child alive that can sit still for longer! All of my child's checkups at the ped aren't considered a waste of time and money, even though it seems all they do is weigh and measure her. As a dentist with years of experience in pediatric dentistry, I've seen first hand the result of neglectful parents who chose not to see the value in their children's oral health. Today, for example, I just extracted FOUR severely decayed, non-restorable teeth on a 3 YEAR OLD. I'm sure these parents also thought it was "good enough" to just brush their teeth and avoid candy. Children are the ones who suffer when expertise is not left up to the real experts.
Sorry, I got on my soapbox here, but it's very upsetting when other moms seem to buy more into mundane opinions than on legitimate advice. Please email me with your location, I can provide you with excellent references for pediatric dentists in your area. Thanks for asking the question and giving me the opportunity to answer, I hope I helped you in any way. Good Luck.
V. DiMario DDS
____@____.com

I agree 3 years is normal, according to my pediatrician and pediatric dentist. He just looked the first time and he said all looked good. Also had a video cartoon at the beginning for him to watch. He said next time they start with the cleaning and appointments are every 6 months here on out. I personally don't see the point in going early to familiarize with the dentist since 6 months is a LONG time between visits for a child, so I don't think those few extra visits will cause them to be more comfortable with it. I think rather the duration through childhood will better prepare them as adults to keep up with it better, along with it being good for them along the way too of course. I was a little paranoid at the first visit because I had heard stories of kids having a bunch of cavities that first visit. Genetics and juice/sweets intake I think make a big difference. So if cavities come easy in the family, it may be worth an earlier visit. And not too much juice or sweets surely helps the teeth.

They might not "do" anything but the exam itself is important just to make sure your child doesn't have any early problems. I know a Mom that didn't take her son in until he was 3 and he had all kinds of problems, so I think earlier is better. I took my son in the first time when he was a little over a year.

K.,

My 3 girls went to the dds about the age of 2 or so. To me it did not make much sense to send them when they had so few teeth. You also might want to check with your insurance carrier. They may have an age when they only cover it. But if your worried about a tooth or something not being right then I would take them in, but for just to get used to going no.

J.

Hi K.!
I just took my son, who is 6, to the pediatric dentist yesterday. My daughter, who will be 3 in December, had a fit because she wanted to see the dentist too! He doesn't want to see her until she's 3, but looked at her teeth just to make her happy! My son's 1st appt wasn't until he was 5 but the receptionist said that most parents start bringing them in before Kindergarten.

We see a very family-friendly dentist and they recommended we just bring the children to our appts when they were about 2yrs old. My child could see mommy sitting in the chair and getting her teeth checked, then at the end of my appt they could have their turn. All they did was count teeth and make sure there was no visible problems, took about 2 mins. They didn't have their own appts with cleanings, etc until 3yrs old. We weren't charged for appts when they just came along, only when they started having their own, more complete exams. Maybe check with your dentist on what he/she recommends.

I talked to my dentist about it and he told me not to take him until he was 3. He wouldn't even see my son before then, because he said they can't do much of anything outside of looking at their teeth. Well, my son is now 4.5 years old and he has been to the dentist three times. The first time he cried the whole time so they didn't even do anything practically- except take my money. No cleaning, etc. So, then I switched to a pediatric dentist. He cleaned his teeth the first time. The second time, when he was 4, they did x rays and cleaning. He said they can't do x rays until they are 4. So, talk with your dentist. But, they don't do much until they are 3-4 years old.

Hi K. ,

I have 2 sons 2 1/2 and 4 and both my sons see the dentist every 6 mnths . My youngest went when he was around 15mnth . Our Ped dentist stated he likes to see the kids as soon as they have thier 1st tooth . The appointment went very smooth and my boys love Dr Z out of Res . By the way they had no issues I just felt it was important to get them use to the DDS .
Good luck