Healthy Me - At Home and Away: Dental caries

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Wednesday, December 15, 2010

From mother to baby

Mothers (and fathers? may not be aware of this... but then again, here it is!
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Teething problem

Mothers can unwittingly pass cavity-inducing bacteria to their kids, causing tooth decay

To cool your toddler's piping hot porridge, you blow at it. Then you slurp a little off the spoon to make sure it is not too hot before you feed your child - with the same spoon.

Between mother and child, this routine exchange of saliva is hardly unusual. However, while doing so, mums may unwittingly pass cavity-inducing bacteria to their babies.

In recent years, research has shown that it is possible for very young children to "catch" cavities from their caregivers via saliva transfer, just like cold and flu viruses.

A 2008 review of 46 studies published in the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry found "strong evidence demonstrated that mothers are a primary source of mutans streptococci colonisation of their children".

Streptococcus mutans is a type of bacteria that causes tooth decay.

According to Dr Choy Keen Meng, clinical director of Toof Doctor, there are more than 100 million bacteria in every millilitre of saliva.

Most oral bacteria are not harmful, unless there are open wounds or cuts inside the mouth. However, some species of bacteria, such as the Streptococcus Mutans (S Mutans), are not as harmless.

"S Mutans are not found occurring naturally in the mouths of babies, but are usually transmitted from a mother with active tooth decay to her child through kissing and sharing of utensils during feeding. This type of bacteria can digest sugars and starches in foods and produce acids that decalcify tooth enamel, leading to tooth decay," said Dr Choy.

In general, the enamel of baby teeth is "softer than adult teeth, and hence very susceptible to harmful oral bacteria", he added.

Don't just blame mum

It is also important to note that dental caries is a multifactorial disease, said Dr Rashid Tahir, specialist paediatric dentist at The Kids Dentist and president of Society for Paediatric Dentistry Singapore

"Having oral bacteria alone may not cause cavities if they are not exposed to sugars, and the person's resistance is good," said Dr Rashid.

Other cavity-causing factors include the child's lifestyle and habits such as poor brushing habits, inadequate floride and frequent snacking on sugary snacks.

Nightly bottle feeds can also increase the child's risk of developing tooth decay.

More babies with decaying teeth

Dental experts Today spoke to said they are seeing more cases of tooth decay in toddlers and pre-school Singapore children.

A recent survey by National University of Singapore's (NUS) faculty of dentistry found that 26 per cent of children at the ages of three and four have dental caries.

There are no official stats on those below the ages of three, but Dr Rashid estimated that tooth decay may afflict up to 25 per cent of toddlers between two and three years old.

His youngest patient, at 18 months old, had tooth decay which required treatment.

Even though baby teeth do eventually fall off, experts said parents should still teach their babies and toddlers to maintain good oral hygiene. Tooth decay in babies can affect one's quality of life, said the dentists.

Making the American Mouth: Dentists and Public Health in the Twentieth Century (Critical Issues in Health and Medicine)

Said Dr Rashid: "Now imagine if a three-year-old child has a toothache. When a toothache occurs, not only does the child suffer, very often the parents suffer, too, because the child may not eat and sleep well.

"When the child doesn't sleep, the parents also won't get to sleep, and the next person to suffer will be the dentist - trying to treat a young child possibly lacking in cooperation because of age and anxiety who is in pain!"

The other problem with tooth decay, added Dr Rashid, is that it may cause a bad infection that results in facial swellings. Such severe infections can sometimes be fatal.

Start early

Tooth Tissues *** (3) THREE PACKS *** Dental Wipes for Baby and Toddler Smiles

Get your little one acquainted with good dental habits, even before he has teeth.

Dr Rashid advised wiping the gum pads of babies twice a day with a wet towel to get them used to twice-daily toothbrushing later.

He added that the first trip to the dentist should also be carried by the age of one year, and not when the child is howling in pain from a toothache.

Taken from TODAYOnline.com; source article is below:
Teething problem

Monday, October 5, 2009

Something to chew on

Silhouettes representing healthy, overweight, ...

Image via Wikipedia

OBESITY IN KIDS
Excess weight puts children at greater risk of developing teeth, gum problems

Eveline Gan
eveline@mediacorp.com.sg

Obese children are at higher risk of developing gum inflammation.

A CHUBBY kid may look cute, but did you know that excess baby fat may be the culprit behind a child's oral problems?

While it is well known that obesity can cause health problems such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, not many parents are aware that the factors leading to excess weight also have serious repercussions on their child's oral health, said dental experts Today spoke to at the Federation Dentaire Internationale (FDI) World Dental Congress last Wednesday.

Hosted by the Singapore Dental Association for the first time in 19 years, the four-day event at Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre was attended by over 10,000 delegates comprising renowned dentists and researchers.

According to Professor Goran Dahllof, a professor of paediatric dentistry at the department of dentistry at Karolinska Institute in Sweden, obese children and teenagers have a higher risk of developing a host of oral problems, such as tooth decay and gum disease, compared with those of normal weight.

About 3.6 per cent of school-going children in Singapore are obese, according to figures provided by the Ministry of Health.

Said Prof Dahllof: "One of the main links (between obesity and poor oral health) is lifestyle and diet. A diet that promotes obesity is also detrimental to oral health."

Added Dr Rashid Tahir, a dental specialist in paediatric dentistry at The Kids Dentist: "Many parents, especially those in Singapore, tend to think that chubbiness is a sign that their children are well fed, and would often indulge their love of junk food."

Most of the calories that obese young people consume come from fermentable carbohydrates, which increases the risk of tooth decay and cavities, said Prof Dahllof.

Fermentable carbohydrates are found in food such as refined wheat flour, rice and noodles. When consumed, they turn into simple sugars, which are then converted into dental plaque in the mouth. As plaque builds up over time, so does the risk for oral health woes.

"Obese children and teenagers also tend to consume a lot of sugary, carbonated drinks. These acidic drinks can slowly erode the enamel of the teeth, causing it to become thinner and become more prone to chipping off," added Dr Tahir.
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Get brushing

On top of controlling their children's diet, parents should also teach them good oral habits when they are young.

"Tooth decay can happen as soon as it erupts from the gums," said Dr Rashid Tahir, a dental specialist in paediatric dentistry at The Kids Dentist.

Make cleaning the mouth a habit even before the baby's first tooth appears, he said.

He recommended that parents clean their baby's mouth and gums with a cloth, and start brushing when teeth start appearing to instil good oral hygiene habits in their child.
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EXCESS BELLY FAT BAD FOR GUMS

Dietary causes aside, Prof Dahllof said that obese people typically store excess fat cells around the abdomen. These cells secrete inflammatory hormones which enter the blood stream and cause problems such as cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes.

"The same type of inflammation can also occur in the gums, especially when you already have bacteria in the mouth," he said.

Gum inflammation diseases include a mild form called gingivitis, in which the gums turn red, swell up and bleed easily. If untreated, the inflammation can spread from the gums to the tissue and bone supporting teeth. This loss of support causes teeth to loosen and eventually fall out.

There are no official local figures on obese children with oral health problems, but Dr Tahir estimated that about a quarter of young patients he sees veer on the chubby side.

Most of them suffer from tooth decay and gingivitis.

According to Dr Tahir, children normally start losing their baby teeth at the age of six. By 12, adult teeth will start to appear.

With oral health problems, obese children may start losing their baby teeth at an earlier age, said Dr Tahir, who has seen toddlers as young as one year old with tooth decay.

"The baby teeth are there to 'reserve' space for adult teeth to come in nicely. With early loss of baby teeth, kids will have problems with the alignment of their permanent teeth later on," he said.

For obese children, simply focusing on dental hygiene will not solve their oral health problems, the dental experts said.

"Brushing the teeth without controlling the consumption of sugar isn't going to work. You have to work to control both obesity and dental problems," said Dr Tahir.

From TODAY, Health – Tuesday, 08-Sep-2009

Thursday, May 7, 2009

Oral activity

Image via Wikipedia

There's plenty of activity going on in your mouth. According to Dr Chong Kai Chuan of Q&M Dental Institute, each mouth has up to 400 types of bacteria.

"For those who clean their mouths well, a tooth may have between a 1,000 to 100,000 bacteria count. Those who don't may have anything from a 100-million to one-billion bacteria count per tooth," said Dr Chong.

"Some of these bacteria may be beneficial in preventing more malignant ones from proliferating, while others may have a direct implication on the body's health," he added.

From TODAY, Health – Tuesday, 05-May-2009

Risky business

Image via Wikipedia

ORAL HYGIENE
Just brushing is not enough to maintain oral health

EVELINE GAN, eveline@mediacorp.com.sg

SIMON Seah has rather good oral care habits. Or at least, he thinks he does.

On a typical day, the 56-year-old's oral care regimen includes brushing twice daily, and rinsing his mouth with water after meals because he can't stand the feeling of having food particles stuck in between his teeth.

Even though Mr Seah agrees his oral care could be somewhat more thorough, he thinks "it is clean enough". But dental experts would beg to differ.

OF MOUTH RINSES AND FLOSS
Early this year, the Asia-Pacific Panel of Dental Experts recommended a new oral care regimen to combat adult tooth decay and gum disease.

On top of brushing twice daily, adults should also incorporate interdental cleaning once a day and use an antibacterial mouth rinse twice daily. Interdental cleaning refers to cleaning the surfaces between the teeth using floss or other more specialised toothbrushes.

Simply relying on toothbrushing is not enough to maintain a healthy mouth, said Dr Chung Kong Mun, president of the Society of Periodontology Singapore.

Dr Chung explained: "(Just brushing) will not effectively reduce most of the dental plaque from surfaces in the oral cavity especially those around the molars." This is especially so for people with malaligned teeth as well as those who have dental appliances or restorations.

"Studies have demonstrated that antiseptic mouth rinses can actually kill the majority of bacteria present in the mouth efficaciously and safely," said Dr Chung, who added that regular dental checkups are the most important.

While such oral health advice isn't new, not many Singaporeans actually practise it.

A recent local oral care study, conducted by Johnson & Johnson, the manufacturers of Listerine, showed that less than one fifth of its participants practise this. The study involved 150 people from 15 to 65 years old across Singapore.

The findings, released last month, revealed that 93 per cent of the participants had heard of rinsing and 86 per cent had heard of flossing, but only 21 and 35 per cent actually rinsed and flossed daily.

"The study confirms most people do not take oral care seriously and are unable to maintain effective oral care with mechanical means (brushing) alone," said Dr Chung.

THE WINDOW TO YOUR OVERALL HEALTH
According to Dr Chong Kai Chuan, director of dental care group, Q&M Dental Institute, the most direct effect of a dirty mouth is an increased risk of dental decay and gum diseases.

More worryingly, bacteria in the mouth could also be linked to certain diseases.

"The mouth is the mirror to the body's health. Looking into the mouth, a clinician can diagnose systemic infections such as late-stage syphilis and herpes infections," said Dr Chong.

He added that certain viruses and bacteria, such as the herpes simplex viruses, flu and cold viruses, venereal diseases and fungal infections can be found in the mouth, and transmitted via the saliva.

Oral bacteria may even increase your risk of stroke and heart attack, he added. Dr Chong cited a recent study by researchers at the University of Buffalo in New York who found a direct link between gum disease and heart disease.

"It has been postulated that certain types of oral bacteria entered the bloodstream through weakened blood vessels in patients with gum diseases," Dr Chong explained.

The bacteria then set off inflammation that indirectly caused blood to clot.

From TODAY, Health – Tuesday, 05-May-2009