Every parent wants to give their children the best start in life and knows that that includes a foundation of good heath, on which they build a good education and a wide range of interests and hobbies. As far as teeth go, these days, dentistry is all about ensuring people get to keep their natural teeth for life. And for that to happen, ensuring a groundwork of instilling good habits in our kids is vital.
Many parents are already aware that getting kids to take care of their teeth now means they will do so as adults, with bi-annual trips to the dentist for check-ups, and a good oral hygiene routine at home.
Parents are also keen that their kids have lovely straight teeth, but there’s something many of them do not know and that’s when is the best time to bring their kids to see the orthodontist in Stanmore at the Centre of Dental Excellence.
They base their timing on what they experienced as children, which is that braces go on teeth somewhere around age 12, when all the adult teeth are through and the orthodontist in Stanmore can see how some are wonky and some didn’t descend properly.
However, dentistry moves on, just as medicine does, and nowadays, we can start to treat children before they have all their adult teeth. In fact, we can start thinking about braces from when children are aged about seven.
If you book your child in for a consultation with Dr Neil Patel, our orthodontist in Stanmore, he will be able to carry out some tests to determine whether your child’s teeth are going to need some help. He can then fit them with braces that can guide their adult teeth into the right position, rather than waiting for them to come through and then moving them. Dr Patel can also use braces to ensure that the jaws meet together properly and that there will be enough space for the teeth to come through.
Braces these days are smaller than they used to be, and we can brighten up your child’s braces by using colourful elastics.