儿童牙齿保健

儿童牙齿保健 一起说：“茄子！” 保护宝宝们美丽的牙齿吧！ 尽管你的孩子终将失去正在萌芽的全部20颗乳牙，保护好它们依然十分重要。这不仅是由于乳牙守护着将由恒牙填补的空间，还因为孩子的乳牙至少还要使用六年时间。下面是一些 儿童牙齿保健的常见问题。 什么原因导致龋齿，如何预防？ 龋齿，也称蛀牙，当牙釉质（牙齿外层）遭到太多酸性物质侵蚀时就会发生。以糖和淀粉的 形式进入口中的碳水化合物滋养多余的细菌，进而产生酸。这种酸在牙齿上腐蚀出洞来，产 生龋齿。通常用白色或金属银汞合金进行修复——称为填料。帮助你的孩子保养好牙齿的最终目的是希望她避免蛀牙。通过在孩子幼年实施良好的牙齿护理并鼓励她继续保持这种习 惯，一定可以控制蛀牙，有时还能防止龋齿。 是否有某些食物可能导致蛀牙？是否有某些食物能防止蛀牙？孩子吃什么影响到他的牙齿 健康。含糖食物常常与龋齿联系在一起，但是这样讲也可能会误导。比如喝巧克力奶就没有 关系，它能提供坚固牙齿所需的蛋白质、钙以及各种维生素。并且因为孩子们喜欢喝，巧克 力奶比纯白牛奶更适合饮用。另一方面，饼干、爆米花和面包实际上要花更长的时间才能融 解，呆在口中的时间比一些糖果还长，这就给引起龋齿的细菌提供了食物。 相比之下，一些食物确实有帮于防止蛀牙。例如，某些类型的奶酪有助于中和那些导致蛀牙 的酸。奶酪和其它奶制品也包含钙，而钙正是强健牙齿所必需的。生的、松脆的水果和蔬菜 会刮落细菌和牙斑，从而降低蛀牙的风险。请记住以下提示： 比孩子吃什么更重要的是他多久才吃一次。一天内给孩子吃零食不要超过3或4次。 淀粉类熟食，如面包、饼干、面条、椒盐卷饼和土豆片等会象含糖食品一样造成龋齿，这是 因为它们溶解缓慢，萦绕在口中。 含糖或含淀粉的食物如果和其他食物同吃而不是单独吃，这样做不大会造成龋齿。松脆的水 果蔬菜类食物能够把含糖或淀粉的食物“移”出口外。 儿童需要蛋白质、各类维生素和矿物质（尤其是钙，磷）强健牙齿，抵御牙齿被腐蚀和预防 牙龈疾病。 什么时候孩子开始自己刷牙？至少在五岁以前，都应该帮助孩子刷牙和洁牙，有些孩子可能 直到10岁还需要帮助。你的儿科医生或儿科牙医会告诉你什么时候你的孩子才能够独立刷 牙。重要的是要让孩子一天至少刷牙两次，睡前用牙线洁牙。牙线洁牙是去除聚集在牙齿之 间和牙龈底部牙斑的唯一办法。这些地方因牙刷接触不到会发生腐蚀。 我应该给孩子氟化添加物吗？美国牙医协会（ADA）建议给不具备最佳饮用含氟水的社区中的儿童补充氟化物。不过，氟过量会导致儿童氟中毒——在牙齿发育形成牙釉质时造成破坏。 氟中毒会导致牙齿变色或表面缺陷。可以请教你的牙医，以确定补充氟化物对您的孩子是否 合适。 怎以做才能防止我的孩子牙齿受伤？谈及孩子口腔的保护，防止牙齿受伤的安全习惯是良好 的生习惯的重要一环。棒球、足球，、榄球、空手道和轮滑都对孩子的牙齿构成潜在的威胁。 作为一般规则，只要可能就要让你的孩子穿戴护齿，因为她有可能触碰别的参与者或坚硬的 物体表面。如果孩子玩游戏时、被磕碰时、摔倒时崩坏或碰掉了牙齿，你应该立即带她去看 儿科牙医。如果整个牙齿都掉了，有一个古老的看似迷信的做法其实是管用的：把牙齿立即 放进牛奶中，然后马上去看牙医。牛奶中的钙有助于保持齿根表面细胞的活性，这对于牙医 能否重新接上牙齿很重要。牙齿离开口腔的时间越久，牙医使它存活的可能性就越小。 牙医如果说孩子需要戴牙箍，怎么办？尽管多数孩子12岁之前不需要戴牙箍，然而某些情 况下儿科牙医确实会建议早些使用牙箍以矫正牙齿和腭部出现结构问题。这些结构问题包括 唇牙外露、齿位偏挤、前牙错咬（下排牙齿与上排牙齿交迭在一起），还有地包天（下腭不 正常前凸）。每种病例都需要分别治疗，所以当牙医建议长有乳牙的孩子戴牙箍时最好是考 虑清楚再决定。 Childhood Dental Care Say cheese! Take care of those beautiful baby teeth. Cavity Prevention Even though your child will eventually lose all 20 of those baby teeth she's sprouting, it's important to take care of them. Not only do baby teeth hold the space that permanent teeth will move into, but your child will need to use those baby teeth for at least six years. Here are some frequently asked questions about childhood dental care. Causes of Cavities What Causes cavities and how can I prevent them? Cavities, also called dental caries, occur when the enamel (the outer layer of the tooth) breaks down from too much acidity. Excess bacteria produce the acid by feeding on carbohydrates which enter the mouth in the form of sugars and starches. The acid erodes a hole in the tooth, creating the cavity, which is typically corrected with a white or metal amalgam restoration -- called a filling. The end result (hopefully) of helping your child take good care of her teeth is that she'll avoid cavities. By enforcing good dental care early in your child's life and encouraging her to continue these habits, you can certainly limit cavities and often prevent them. What to Feed Your Child and What to Avoid Are there certain foods that might cause cavities? Are there any foods that can help prevent them? What your child eats can affect the health of his teeth. Sugary foods are often associated with cavities, but that can be misleading. Chocolate milk, for example, is okay. It provides the protein, calcium, and vitamins that kids need for strong teeth. And since kids like it, they're apt to drink more of it than white milk. On the other hand, crackers, popcorn, and breads can actually take longer to dissolve and stay in the mouth longer than some candies, providing food for cavity-causing bacteria. What to Avoid By contrast, some foods actually help prevent cavities. For example, certain types of cheese can help neutralize the production of cavity-causing acids. Cheese and other dairy products also contain calcium, which is needed to make teeth strong. Raw, crunchy fruits and vegetables scrape away some of the bacteria and plaque in the mouth, thus reducing the risk of cavities. Keep these tips in mind: How often your child eats is more important than what he eats. Offer your child snacks no more than three or four times a day. Cooked starches, such as breads, crackers, pastas, pretzels, and potato chips, contribute to cavities just as much as sugary foods, because they tend to dissolve slowly and linger in the mouth. A food with sugar or starch is less likely to cause cavities if it's eaten with other foods rather than alone. Foods such as crunchy fruits and vegetables, for instance, can help "move" sugary or starchy foods out of the mouth. Children need protein, vitamins, and minerals (especially calcium and phosphorous) to build strong teeth and to resist tooth decay and gum disease. Tooth Brushing When is my child ready to start brushing his teeth on his own? You'll need to continue helping your child brush and floss his teeth until he's at least age 5. Some children may need help brushing until age 10. Your pediatrician or pediatric dentist will let you know when your child is able to brush on his own. The important thing is that your child brush his teeth at least twice a day and floss before bedtime. Flossing is the only way to remove the plaque that accumulates between the teeth and below the gum line -- areas where a toothbrush can't reach and decay often begins. The Extras Should I give my child fluoride supplements? The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends fluoride supplements for children who live in communities that don't have optimally fluoridated drinking water. However, overfluoridating children can lead to fluorosis -- disruption in enamel formation during tooth development. Fluorosis can cause tooth discoloration or surface irregularities. Ask your dentist to determine whether fluoride supplements would be appropriate for your child. Tooth Problems What can I do to prevent injuries to my child's teeth? When it comes to protecting your child's mouth, the safety habits that prevent injuries to teeth are every bit as important as good hygiene. Activities such as baseball, soccer, football, karate, and roller-blading all pose potential hazards to your child's teeth. As a general rule, your child should wear a mouth guard whenever there's a chance that she'll come into contact with other participants or with hard surfaces. If your child chips or breaks a tooth during a game, or in an injury or fall, you should take her to the pediatric dentist immediately. If the whole tooth has been knocked out, the old dental myth does hold true: Put your child's tooth in milk immediately and get right to the dentist. The calcium in the milk helps keep the cells on the root surface of the tooth alive, which is essential for the dentist to be able to reattach the tooth. The longer the tooth is out of the mouth, the less likely it is that the dentist will be able to save it. When Kids Need Braces What if the dentist says my child needs braces? Although most children don't get braces until about age 12, in certain cases pediatric dentists recommend an earlier use of them to correct structural problems in the teeth or jaws. These structural problems include teeth that stick out beyond the lip, severe crowding, a crossbite (when the lower teeth overlap with the upper ones), and an underbite (when the jaw sticks out abnormally). Since each case needs to be treated individually, it's best to get a second opinion if a dentist is recommending braces for a child who still has baby teeth.