How Can Dental Sealants Protect Teeth From Decay?
Dental Sealants protect your child’s newly erupted teeth from decay. Tooth decay is a big problem in children with a high sugary diet and poor oral hygiene. Very often, we recommend that your children have sealants applied to their teeth as a precautionary method to reduce tooth decay.
A cavity by definition is a hollow place. Often, the posterior teeth known as premolar and molar teeth and the backsides of top front teeth are formed with deep grooves, we call “pits and fissures”. Despite our best efforts, the toothbrush bristles cannot reach down to clean out these crevices. It is warm, dark and moist at the bottom of these pits, and the acid produced by bacteria metabolizes sugar easily. This begins to dissolve the tooth enamel to kick-start the decay process.
“Pit and fissure” sealants are absolutely wonderful and certainly something you should consider. With sealants, fluoride, good hygiene and nutrition, as well as regular dental visits, tooth decay can be dramatically reduced. The newly erupted, immature enamel of children’s teeth is more permeable than adult teeth and therefore more susceptible and less resistant to tooth decay. Until the enamel matures with age, it is critical to protect the surface of your children’s teeth with dental sealants to enhance their longevity.
