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At Coolbreeze Dentistry, we provide a full spectrum of dental treatments in a friendly and comfortable environment. Our practice is located in Valley Ranch. Call (972) 432-8811 today to schedule your visit with Dr. Aggarwal and the rest of the team at Coolbreeze Dentistry.

 

Meet Your Valley Ranch, Irving, TX Dentist

Can I request an appointment on your website or should I call?

You can submit an appointment request on this page and we will follow up to confirm your appointment. If you have an emergency dental issue please give us a call so we can get you on our schedule quickly.

(972) 432-8811

12 Questions People Ask Most Often About Kids’ Dental Health

1. What age should a child go to the dentist for the first time?

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) says that a child should go to the dentist for the first time as soon as their first tooth comes in and no later than one year of age. The first X-ray should be taken when the child is 3 years old or when the back teeth touch.

2. What can the kids expect to happen at the check-up?

Most of the time, check-ups involve looking at and counting the teeth. If the child is between 2.5 and 3 years old, there may be a need for X-rays. But it depends on the child and how open he or she is to change.

How often should children go to the dentist?

Every six months, kids should go to the dentist. We take X-rays at every visit if a child has cavities or has had cavities in the past. X-rays can be done once a year if they don’t have cavities or a tendency to get cavities.

4. What does “painless dentistry” mean?

There are a number of things that go into pain-free dentistry. This includes the methods we use to avoid using local anesthetics, like laser dentistry and SDF (silver diamine fluoride), which stops cavities from getting worse without hurting. We also use sedation (nitrous oxide or laughing gas) to try to make the child as comfortable as possible in the environment and during the procedure. We can give them sedation and numb the areas well so they don’t feel any pain during invasive procedures.

5. When should kids start to brush their teeth?

As soon as the first tooth comes in, parents should start brushing their baby’s teeth. But even before the first tooth falls out, parents should wipe their gums with a finger brush or massager.

6. Are dental X-rays safe for kids?

Yes, X-rays of the teeth are safe for kids. Only every six months or once a year do you need them. With digital X-rays, patients are now only exposed to very small amounts of radiation (very low radiation).

7. What are the most common problems that kids have with their teeth?

The most common disease in children is dental caries, or tooth decay. Early childhood caries (ECC) is the most common disease in young children. It is a fast form of tooth decay, and the main cause is putting kids to bed with a bottle of juice or milk.

8. What is tooth decay, and how can I help my child avoid it?

Bacteria attack the teeth, breaking them down and making holes in them. This is called tooth decay. There are many things that can cause cavities, like genetics, the shape of the teeth, the saliva, the bacteria in the mouth, the food you eat, and how well you take care of your teeth. Tooth decay is caused by all of these things working together.

9. At what age can a child be left alone to brush his or her own teeth?

Parents should brush and floss their kids’ teeth until the kids are old enough to do it on their own. Most kids can brush their teeth on their own at age 7 and floss on their own at age 10.

10. Why is it so important to take care of baby teeth after they fall out?

Teeth are very important for babies. First, they hold the space for the permanent teeth until they grow in. When a baby tooth is lost too soon, the teeth next to it may move into the empty space (area of less resistance). When this happens, the permanent tooth won’t be able to come in. This could lead to bad teeth.

Second, the path for the new permanent tooth to come in is through the root of the baby tooth. When the new tooth comes in, it slowly dissolves the roots of the old tooth, which it then comes to replace. So, when a baby tooth falls out, all you see is the crown and not the roots.

Third, a child has “mixed dentition” between the ages of 6 and 12, which means they have both baby teeth and permanent teeth. Bacteria are contagious and spread, so all of the teeth, new and old, are in the same saliva, which has bacteria and puts the permanent teeth at risk of getting cavities.

11. What are dental sealants? Should kids have them? How often do they need to be used?

Back teeth, like the 6-year and 12-year molars, and sometimes even baby teeth, have deep grooves and pits that make it hard to clean them well. They make it easy for food to get stuck and give bacteria a place to grow.

Dental sealant is a liquid that we put on the chewing surfaces of our teeth and then dry with a curing light. Sealants make these places “smooth” so that cavities are less likely to form there.

I’ve seen kids who really don’t need sealants. But sealants need to be touched up every two years for those who use them.

If they are done well or if the child doesn’t eat a lot of sticky food, they can last much longer.

12. What are dental sealants? Should kids have them? How often do they need to be used?

It’s a bad habit to chew on your thumb. We usually tell parents to give their babies a pacifier so they don’t chew on their fingers.

Parents find it easier to get their kids to stop using a pacifier than to stop sucking their thumbs. But pacifiers should not be used after 18 months. After this age, it is less likely that the baby will still want to chew on their fingers.

After a year and a half, we tell parents to stop giving their kids pacifiers or letting them chew on their thumbs because this extra force “molds” the jaw in the wrong way. Over time, it makes the upper jaw narrower and moves the upper teeth forward, which puts them at risk of breaking.

These habits can lead to a crossbite, which may need to be fixed by braces at a young age.

CALL TO SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENT WITH COOLBREEZE DENTISTRY

(972) 432-8811