It can be hard to guarantee that your child is taking proper care of their teeth. While children’s teeth are not inherently more vulnerable to developing cavities, they may not brush and floss with the necessary skill to fully guard against them. Your dentist can use dental sealants to help defend your child’s back teeth (which are used predominantly in chewing). Dental sealants are easy to apply, and put a defensive barrier between your child’s teeth, and the food debris and plaque that accumulates in their mouth.
Dental sealant is a protective plastic coating that your dentist places over the teeth that are primarily engaged to chew food. While dental sealants are normally used to protect children’s teeth, adults can also benefit from receiving dental sealants. The coating serves as a barricade to keep plaque and food debris from sticking to teeth, especially in a tooth’s pits and cusps, areas that can be harder to keep clean. Dental sealants can wear away over time, but your dentist can check the sealants, and reapply them as needed, during a checkup.
The bacteria that form plaque reacts to sugars by producing acid, which harms tooth enamel, and eventually erodes it. Dental sealants keep plaque and food debris from attaching to teeth, so that these acids are not able to harm the enamel. By protecting your child’s teeth with dental sealants, you reduce the likelihood that they will need treatment for a cavity. However, even with dental sealants, it is important that your child develops good brushing and flossing habits.