When a Family Dentist May Recommend Dental Sealants

Your family dentist can apply dental sealants as an effective way to protect the chewing surfaces of your child’s teeth. The sealants are in liquid form but harden when in contact with saliva. This preventive treatment can help protect your child’s teeth from bacteria and food particles. Here are the details on when your family dentist may suggest a dental sealant treatment.

The benefits of dental sealants

Bacteria eat the food particles left on teeth. This activity produces acids that attack the enamel layer of teeth. Cavities form as teeth develop without protection. Shielding a child’s new teeth from tooth decay is the primary advantage and purpose of these sealants. The family dentist will apply them to the child’s premolars and molars.

Recommending dental sealants

The family dentist will recommend sealants to kids who have baby teeth. Children are more prone to tooth decay at this stage of development. It is important to protect baby teeth because these teeth will guide the growth and development of adult teeth. The child will have aligned and healthy secondary teeth once the baby teeth fall out.

Fluoride is an element that can protect the enamel layer of teeth. This element can also protect the teeth from bacterial acids. But chewing surfaces have grooves and pits that collect bacteria, as well as food particles. Children find cleaning the premolars and molars difficult. That is why these teeth tend to develop tooth decay.

Placing dental sealants on these teeth can protect them from early decay. It can give the young patient a good start with dental health. Keeping baby teeth healthy can contribute to the good health of the developing adult teeth. This can also prevent expensive and complicated dental treatments in the future.

When to give kids dental sealants

The family dentist knows when the right time is to give this preventive treatment. Studies reveal that the ideal time to get dental sealants is when the permanent teeth start to erupt. The protective shield will prevent early decay. The secondary molars come out at around six years of age. The next molars will erupt at about 11-13 years old.

Wisdom teeth erupt last. They often do when the other teeth have emerged. By this time, there is not enough space anymore. Some dentists suggest removing these teeth. Others recommend keeping them. A family dentist may then apply sealants to wisdom teeth.

Sealants for adults

Bringing young kids to dental checkups makes parents aware that sealants are important for their children’s health. However, a family dentist can offer them to adult patients as well. This is an ideal way to show kids how to care for their teeth. Getting dental sealants as adults can protect teeth from tooth decay. The family dentist can explain the pretreatments before applying the sealants.

This type of preventive treatment is affordable. It is also a non-invasive way to protect teeth. A patient can get it in one dental visit. The sealants can stay on teeth for a long time. Regular checkups can give way for re-applications.