HEALTH
Fear st More:
No
Your Kid’s
1Dental Visit
The First Visit: The Most Important Event
“Bring your child to the dentist when he or she is about a year old.”
During the visit, the dentist will teach you and your partner the ways to clean and
care for newly erupted baby teeth, especially after mealtimes. One of the worst
things you could do is to allow your infant to sleep with the milk bottle in the
mouth. This causes the milk to pool around the gums and teeth, which can lead to
serious rampant decay of your toddler’s teeth.
Although this is a treatable condition, it can be very expensive.
“The first dental visit can make or break your child’s attitude towards the dentist.”
Choose a dentist who is adept at handling children. For Dr Lim, the most important
thing that he does is to introduce the “strange equipment” in a fun and exciting
manner. He lets the child discover the dental chair and how it works, and become
familiar with the dental tools he uses.
When your child becomes familiar with the environment and equipment, he or she
will usually settle down and begin to enjoy the new experience.
The Second, Third and
Subsequent Visits: Turning
Dental Care Into A Routine
“When your child is between
3- and 4-years-old, it is time
for the second visit.”
By this age, your little one
should have a mouth full of
baby chompers – about 20 in
total – that help him or her to
chew on food and act as the
bestaccessories to a beautiful
smile. This is the perfect time
to introduce your child to the
wonders of routine dental care
to keep those pearly whites
gleaming.
Milk teeth might be
temporary but it’s still
important for your kid to
visit a dentist. Healthy
baby chompers play many
important roles in your
child’s life. Dr Lim Swee
Teck explains how parents
can take care of their
precious one’s teeth.
Dr Lim Swee Teck has been peering
into mouths almost every day for the
past 48 years, polishing teeth, removing
plaque and filling in cavities for young
and old alike. Through the years, the
friendly dentist has built a reputation
for himself among his peers for being
very good with kids, a child whisperer
of sorts.
Dr Lim’s journey began in the early
1960s when he was training to be a
dentist. Every Saturday, he would watch
as crying children who needed to have
their rotten teeth extracted sat on the
chair, afraid of what was to come next
– a painful orchestra of dental tools
that would inevitably leave them with
missing teeth and a bleeding mouth.
“How frightening it is for the child!
The brain registers all these events
and that is how ‘intense fear’ arises
in these children. I was so moved by
the children’s [plight] that I decided to
pursue this area of specialisation,”
Dr Lim enthuses.
Today, the first male in paediatric
dentistry has a booming practice and
a long list of happy children who look
forward to sitting on his comfortable
dental chair, a far cry from the picture
of crying kids he was faced with almost
50 years ago.
26
Family & Life • Oct 2013
Family & Life • Oct 2013
The dentist will check and polish
your kid’s teeth and explain how
to prevent tooth decay. Following
the second visit, it is best if you
and your child return to the
dentist every six months.
“Parents are usually concerned
about stains, cavities and
alignment of their children’s
teeth.”
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