DENTAL HEALTH.

Shannon News, 15 February 1929, Page 4

DENTAL HEALTH.

I ' CARE OF THE TEETH. Two-thirds of children of school age suffer from defective teeth. A child with decayed teeth cannot be healthy. The first teeth of the second set to appear are four big double teeth at the back of the mouth behind the first set. These teeth may be cut at any time between five and eight years of age, and are the most important teeth in the head. If the teeth grow irregularly the dentist should be consulted. Decay is due to fermentation of the particles of food left upon or between the teeth. The teeth then decay in places, which often cannot easily be seen or reached, and the decay may make considerable headway before it is discovered. The results are numerous—from inability to masticate food and the formation of gumboils to the poisoning of the- whole body, loss of portions of the jaw, and even of life. Hence the child's mouth should be inspected by a dentist at least once in every six months, whether the teeth ache or not.

Inflammation or sponginess of the gums is a disease quite as important as decay of the teeth. Its first sign, is that the gums bleed easily when brushed. If bleeding occurs when the gum and teeth are brushed oa more than two successive clays advice should at once be south. '

Children with decayed teeth cannot properly bite their food; often because of tender teeth they refuse their food or bolt it, and so do not obtain sufficient nourishment to allow full growth and development of the body. In the cavities of decayed teeth the'food decomposes, and the products of such decomposition, together with the discharges from the diseased gums around the teeth, are swallowed, causing indigestion and other forms of stomach trouble. Even more serious illnesses may arise from the same cause. Enlarged glands in the neck, repeated sore throats, gumboils, ulcers of the mouth, indigestion, constipation, and diarrhoea are extremely common. So, too, the presence of decaying food at and under the margin of the gums often causes more general troubles than actual decay of the teeth. Preservation of the Teetn.

The child should eat slowly and chew well. Food should only be given at regular intervals, and frequent sucking of sweets should be forbidden. Soft foods are more liable to cling to the teeth, whereas harder foods, which are often more easily disgested, require more biting, and thus the teeth are kept cleaner and the growth of the jaws assisted. Clean the teeth every night immediately before going to bed and again in the morning. No food e.g., sweets, biscuits, or milk, must be taken after the brushing at night. After brushing, thoroughly swill out the mouth with clean water. If a tooth decays it should be filled or removed; on no account should a decayed tooth be left without treatment, even when there is no pain. Roots of decayed teeth are always a source of danger and should be extracted. Parents and guardians should insist on having children regularly examined from time to time so as to exclude the risk of insidious infection. Tuberculosis begins frequently in childhood. If detected early it is readily arrested. If missed the consequences may be very serious.