Dental sealants are designed to help protect your child’s teeth from cavities.

As a parent, you have a lot to worry about when it comes to your children, including their health and wellness. If you are looking for a little more peace of mind to help keep their teeth protected from cavities, ask the staff at Pediatric Dental Specialists how dental sealants can be the invisible boost of protection your child’s teeth need.

What are dental sealants?

Many parents may not have heard about dental sealants or fully understand what a dental sealant is. Parents who want to know more should talk with their pediatric dentists at Pediatric Dental Specialists.

Brushing and flossing at least twice a day are great oral habits to acquire, but even with excellent brushing and flossing habits, teeth still have plenty of nooks and crannies where bacteria can find a place to call home—and that’s something we don’t want! To help preserve their child’s teeth, and maybe save them some pain in the long run, parents have the choice of using preventative dental sealants to prevent their child from developing cavities.

A dental sealant is a thin, protective coating that is painted on the chewing surface of teeth to help prevent cavities and tooth decay. Dental sealants are normally painted on the premolars and molars, or the back teeth. These back teeth are often harder for children to brush properly and are especially prone to decay due to their grooved surface. A dental sealant acts as an extra invisible layer of protection for teeth and helps to keep out all the bad things, like plaque and bacteria, which can cause cavities and tooth decay if not taken care of. 

Who can benefit from dental sealants?

Both children and teens can benefit from having dental sealants applied to their back teeth. Since dental sealants are placed on the molars, your child’s molars must have erupted completely before they can get dental sealants as a form of protection. A child’s first set of molars comes in around the age of six, while the second set of molars comes in around age twelve.

Will the sealant be obvious in my child’s smile?

Dental sealants are usually clear, or tinted white. A dental sealant isn’t visible to the eye, and a sealant won’t be able to be seen when your child is smiling. Think of it as an invisible superhero providing extra protection for your child’s teeth.

Children will sometimes say that a tooth with a dental sealant feels different when they run their tongue across it at first, but over time, there is no way for you, or your child, to tell that a dental sealant was applied to their teeth.

How can dental sealants benefit my child’s teeth?

Since tooth brushing can be difficult for some children, especially when trying to reach the back of their mouth and clean their molars properly, your dentist may recommend using dental sealants to help protect the enamel on your child’s molars. 

A dental sealant doesn’t cause any pain. The sealants are applied to all the chewing surfaces of the molars to protect the tooth’s surface from tooth decay, which can cause cavities or tooth decay. The sealant forms a barrier over the tooth, essentially making it stronger and more durable.

How is a dental sealant applied?

Once you have discussed dental sealants with the staff at Pediatric Dental Specialists and have decided that dental sealants are right for your child, you might be wondering how the dental sealants are applied. 

First, the team at Pediatric Dental Specialists will give the teeth a thorough cleaning. The teeth are then rinsed off and dried. After that, the dental sealant is painted onto each tooth’s surface. A UV light may be used to cure, or set, the dental sealant, allowing it to form a tight, protective bond on the tooth. 

That is all there is when applying a dental sealant! The procedure is simple, painless, and doesn’t take much time at all, so your little child should be able to sit through it without any issues.

Pediatric Dental Specialists are partners in your child’s preventative dental care.

The team at Pediatric Dental Specialists love what they do—and that is to provide dental care for pediatric dental patients. We love watching our patients grow and help them achieve healthy smiles that can last a lifetime.

If your child hasn’t seen us in the last six months, contact Pediatric Dental Specialists today to book an appointment to have a regular biannual dental evaluation done. From there, parents are encouraged to ask questions about preventative dental care, like dental sealants, to help their child’s teeth stay healthy and protected.