When our little ones are fussing about right before bed, we know what it means. It means they are hungry for their night feed. Once we pop that bottle into their mouths, it isn’t much longer before our little angels drift off to sleep. But we must remember to remove our child’s bottle from their mouth once they have fallen asleep.
Tooth decay in kids from milk
Tooth decay in kids from milk is a common problem | Source: Screenshot from Facebook
A Thai dentist’s post has gone viral on Facebook after sharing how he had to extract 18 out of 20 teeth from a young boy.
The Phuket-based dentist shared pictures on his Facebook page on the boy’s severe tooth decay, warning parents that they shouldn’t leave the child’s bottle in their mouths after they have fallen asleep.
According to the doctor’s post, the boy would often drift off to sleep with a bottle teat in his mouth, from drinking milk.
In his Facebook post which has since garnered over 33,000 views at the time of writing, the dentist urges parents to make their children brush their teeth regularly and to not let them sleep with pacifiers or teats in their mouth, as that increases the risk of tooth decay.
Source: Sathian Ken Suravisankul/Facebook
The boy is now left with 2 teeth, on either side of his jaw. His food intake will be affected for the time being.
This is a common problem that many children face, though not always to this point of severity. In fact, this issue even has a name – Nursing Bottle Syndrome (NBS).
Nursing Bottle Syndrome (NBS) is caused when baby teeth have contact with liquids containing sugar such as milk, formula or juice for an extended period of time. It causes extensive decay. This results in children as young as two years needing fillings, crowns or extractions.
How to protect your baby from Nursing Bottle Syndrome
- Wean children from the bottle as early as 12-14 months
- Never let your child walk around with a bottle filled with milk for more than 20 minutes
- Begin brushing your child’s teeth as soon as teeth appear, or clean them using a wet cloth
- Dental examinations should begin at 12 months or earlier, if a problem is noted
- Juices and sodas cause erosion of teeth and should be avoided; 4oz is the maximum amount of juice a child should consume in a day
- Children should be fed every 2-3 hours
- A typical schedule could be breakfast at 8:00 am, snack at 10:00 am, lunch at 12:00 pm and so forth
- Water is the only thing they should be consuming between the meals
Read also: How to trick your child to brush their teeth