Do you know that cavities are contagious? Similar to other diseases, a cavity infection may have a permanent effect on your children’s teeth — you may even pass this infection to your kids if you are not careful! The costly effects of this decay may may lead to not so cheap dental care for your family. Read on for surprising details about how cavities spread.
Know the Facts
Studies show that dental decay is the number one chronic health problem among children. This decay may even appear as early as your child’s first baby tooth, so do not waste time gaining professional but cheap dental care for even the littlest members of your family.
You may notice that you can spread a cold to your kids, but do you know that your children can catch your cavities too? Dental decay is similar to other chronic diseases — the result of a transmissible infection by bacteria — but preventative cheap dental care and a few lifestyle adjustments may slow the spread of cavities from you to your kids.
What is Dental Decay?
This decay is the development of cavities within teeth. Cavities form when bacteria in an adult or child’s mouth combines with sugars in foods and drinks to form a hardened acid that eats holes in the enamel of teeth. When these holes fill with bacteria, they can cause much pain for you or your child — if your child is in pain, you may want to provide them with the care you can afford at a qualified general or pediatric dentist as soon as possible.
The Bacterium at Fault
Cavities are commonly caused by a contagious bacterium, Streptococcus mutans. This bacterium is continually spread from adults to children, similar to the common cold. For some reason, adults do not spread this type of bacteria to each other, but it is typically spread from adult to child.
Effects of Cavities on your Children
Chronic tooth decay may result in premature baby tooth loss — this loss may cause your children’s other baby teeth to move, blocking openings for their adult teeth to come in! The result of childhood of tooth decay may be a future of costly, crowded, crooked adult teeth if not addressed with cheap dental care.
Cavity Misconceptions
Did your parents or dentist tell you that sugary sweets caused your cavities? Did you believe that there was a direct connection between how many fillings you had growing up and how much candy you could eat while your parents were not watching? Maybe you were labeled as “soft-toothed,” and heard that you were destined for multiple cavities. These reasons for cavities may not be completely correct. New research may indicate that your child’s level of exposure to the streptococcus mutans infection may contribute to the amount of cavities they develop.
A contagious cavity infection, however, can actually be spread through kissing your child, sharing eating utensils, or other daily interactions, such as speaking closely to your child, that may cause even a small drop of your saliva to transfer mouths.
Prevention Methods
The best prevention of the spread of cavities in your household is often to get proper preventative care for yourself and your spouse. Dentists say that if you do not have access to regularly scheduled dental care every 6 months to a year, you may be spreading streptococcus mutans every time you kiss your child!
Another key prevention method is to ensure that your kids are exercising adequate oral hygiene themselves, and to take the time to train them appropriately. Dentists say that until your children reach age eight, they often do not have the motor skills to remove all plaque themselves with their toothbrush — double check your kids’ teeth after they brush to make sure every tooth has been cleaned!
Research that indicates the contagious nature of cavities is causing parents and children to think twice about family oral hygiene and investigating cavity prevention methods and cheap dental care. You may care about your kids’ oral health more than your own, but be sure to exercise proper hygiene yourself to halt the spread of chronic dental decay. Your kids and your own mouth will thank you!