Baby Bottle Bruise
Early childhood caries is a common type of dental decay that starts in the upper incisor teeth of babies and progresses very quickly. In baby bottle decay, it is not the bottle itself that causes cavities, but the milk in the bottle. It is known that babies sleep more comfortably because of the milk they drink from a bottle before going to sleep at night. However, some parents add sweeteners such as honey, molasses, or sugar to the milk to increase its nutritional value. Milk given through a bottle accumulates on the teeth after the baby falls asleep. Since saliva secretion decreases during sleep, it cannot clean the milk residues from the teeth. For this reason, the mineral structure of the tooth enamel is damaged when caries-causing microbes create acid in the baby’s teeth.
In baby bottle caries, chalky white spots first appear on the teeth. Later, yellow-brown bruises form. Baby bottle tooth decay initially begins on the front surfaces of the baby’s upper jaw incisors, and if left untreated, it spreads to all teeth. If baby bottle tooth decay is not treated, the tooth becomes infected. Due to the infection, the baby feels pain, becomes restless, has disrupted sleep patterns, and is unable to feed regularly. Additionally, inflamed milk teeth can damage the developing permanent teeth underneath. The deterioration in the child’s speech and aesthetic appearance due to teeth lost to decay negatively affects the child’s psychology. Therefore, tooth decay in babies is a condition that should never be neglected.
Treatment of baby bottle caries must be performed by a pedodontist. A child treated in the dentist’s chair on the lap of his or her mother or father can have healthy teeth with short and painless sessions. If there is extensive decay in the mouth and the child cannot cooperate, treatments can be performed under general anesthesia under the supervision of an anesthesiologist. If the decay is too advanced, the tooth is extracted. Expert pedodontists at Elit Istanbul Medical Center treat baby bottle caries in the Oral and Dental Health Department equipped with advanced technological devices.
To prevent your baby from experiencing bottle bruise;
- He should not be allowed to sleep with a bottle in his mouth.
- After drinking milk from a bottle, it must be ensured that it drinks water.
- Foods with high sugar content such as honey, jam and molasses should not be added to milk.
- Teeth should be cleaned with a moistened cheesecloth wrapped around the index finger.
- Night feeding should be stopped after one year of age.
- The baby should be taken to the dentist regularly from the age of one.
- Instead of a carbohydrate-based diet that sticks to the teeth, fiber-rich foods, rich in vegetables and fruits, should be preferred.
- Since the swallowing reflex cannot be controlled until the age of 2-3, the teeth should be brushed twice a day by the mother or father with fluoride-free toothpaste and a small-headed, soft-bristled toothbrush.