Dental Sealants and Their Functioning Explained
What comes to your mind when dentists recommend dental sealants on your child’s molars soon after they develop them? First, you wonder whether your child has already developed infections in the mouth to need treatments with dental sealants. You express surprise after receiving information from the dentist near me that their recommendation is not to treat infections but to prevent them from affecting your child.
Not having sufficient information about dental sealants, you delve deeper, asking further questions on why your child needs dental sealants at a young age. Finally, you realize what dental sealants are after receiving answers from the dentist that these are merely a preventive measure to help your child avoid cavities on their back teeth that are challenging to clean with toothbrushes and dental floss. Therefore, you accept the dentist’s proposal to get your child dental sealants near you, thinking why your child needs a preventive measure against cavities when they brush and floss as recommended by the dentist.
This article provides information on what dental sealants are and their functioning to understand further why dentists recommend them for children between the cavity-prone ages of six and 14. We suggest you continue reading to know how sealants help prevent unnecessary expenditure on intensive dental treatments that become necessary due to cavities.
Dental Sealants Explained
Calling dental sealants a treatment would be gross injustice because these slimy and durable plastic coatings prevent cavities in the teeth of children and adults without restorations or fillings. Dentists recommend sealants for children because they lack the motor skills to brush their back teeth or remain negligent with dental hygiene practices.
Sealants are primarily recommended on the molars having deep grooves and depressions. The function of sealants is to create smoother chewing surfaces on the molars, making it easier for children to remove food particles and plaque remaining trapped in them to permit mouth bacteria to feed on them and deposit toxins to erode tooth enamel and cause cavities.
Children with dental sealants are three times less likely to get affected by tooth decay than children without them. However, children with cavities are likely to report unwell from the pain they experience in the tooth and confront challenges with everyday activities like eating or going to school. The holes, in turn, make restorations with fillings or root canals essential if left untreated for an extended period. It is to prevent these issues; dentists recommend dental sealants on children’s teeth as a preventive measure against cavities.
What Benefits Do Sealants Provide?
Besides making molars easier to clean when brushing, sealants help prevent 80 percent of cavities for two years after applying them. The protection remains ongoing against 50 percent of holes for another four. In addition, the sealants stay on the teeth for approximately a decade needing monitoring regularly during dental exams. However, dentists can apply sealants if they notice the chipping or cracking of the application.
Are Sealants Exclusively for Children?
Perceptions exist in the minds of people that sealants are created exclusively for children to prevent holes from developing on their molars. In contrast, sealants were designed to protect all teeth, whether in children or adults. For example, if you experience sensitivity in your teeth due to the impacts on your mouth, chipping your teeth, or gum disease, the Kearney dentist recommends this treatment to prevent additional damage to your teeth.
If you don’t understand how a chipped tooth benefits from sealants for sensitive teeth, you benefit by realizing the sealant blocks the cracks in your tooth to inhibit your mouth bacteria from penetrating it or prevents food particles from remaining trapped in them. The preventive measure ensures your teeth have a protective barrier to ease the sensitivity and prevent you from developing holes in your teeth from enamel erosion caused by your mouth bacteria.
Does Getting Sealants Cause Pain or Discomfort?
Applying dental sealants is straightforward and painless. The dentist requires a few minutes to complete the application on the targeted tooth. You might experience discomfort sitting with your mouth open in the dentist’s chair for a few minutes, but it is unlikely that you will. The dentist completes the application by first cleaning the targeted tooth and drying it. Next, the chewing surfaces of the tooth receive an application of an acid solution to rough the surface to assist the sealant bond to the tooth. Finally, the tooth is cleaned and dried before the sealant is painted on the tooth enamel. Dental sealants harden instantly because the dentist uses a curing light for this purpose.
Whether your child receives dental sealants to prevent cavities or you need these bonds for sensitive teeth, the expenses involved are minimal, and the protection they provide is significant. Therefore do not hesitate to give your child a safety mechanism on their molars to prevent tooth decay and receive sealants on your teeth if you are experiencing sensitivity.
Dental sealants help prevent Cavities on molars that are challenging to clean. Platte Valley Dental Clinic provides sealants to all patients needing them as a preventive measure on their teeth. If you are convinced about the benefits of this excellent preventive measure, kindly do not hesitate to contact the practice mentioned to protect your and your children’s teeth.