Tip of the day: Protect those baby teeth

We thought we were well past the days when parents didn't worry about baby teeth because they were just going to fall out anyway. So we're sort of scratching our heads at this news: Tooth decay is the single most common chronic childhood disease, according to the U.S. Surgeon General.

Who knew?

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry has an education campaign, "Get it Done in Year One'' aimed at getting parents to take their babies to a pediatric dentist by the time the first baby tooth appears. And before you cynics point out that this sure would be good for the dental trade, studies show that dental costs for children who have their first dental visit before age one are 40 percent lower in the first five years than for those who do not see a dentist prior to their first birthday. So there.

The AAPD recommends the following at-home methods for infant oral health care:
 
· Clean infant mouths and gums regularly with a soft infant toothbrush or cloth and water. 
· Children older than six months need fluoride supplements if their drinking water does not contain enough fluoride.  Fluoride supplementation in infants has been shown to reduce tooth decay by as much as 50 percent.
· Babies should be weaned from the bottle by 12-14 months of age and at will breast-feeding should be discouraged.
· Baby teeth should be brushed at least twice a day with a toothbrush made for small children using a “smear” of fluoridated toothpaste.