Bottle caries: how to protect the baby’s first teeth before spots appear

Bottle caries is one of the most aggressive and silent forms of childhood caries and can start much earlier than most parents imagine.

It does not appear overnight, nor begins with pain. It starts with small changes in the enamel, almost invisible, that gain ground until they leave clear marks and difficult to ignore.

The most disconcerting thing is this: many babies have seemingly “normal” routines and still develop early caries. Not for lack of care, but because no one explained something simple: the oral health of the baby does not start when he already has enough teeth to “be worth it”. It starts yes in the first tooth as we will continue to see today, and as we already talked here!

Bottle caries: what it is and why it happens so early

Bottle caries is a type of early tooth decay that occurs when the baby’s teeth are exposed repeatedly and for long periods to liquids with sugars, especially at night.

And we know that the word “sugar” is not limited to soft drinks, even when we talk about its effects on teeth. May be present in formulas, milk and other liquids consumed in moments of sleep, when the mouth has less ability to self-clean.

During the night, the production of saliva decreases. And saliva is an essential defense mechanism: it helps to neutralize acids and “wash” waste.

So when the baby falls asleep with the bottle or falls asleep right after feeding, without any oral cleansing, it creates the perfect setting for plaque to do its job: producing acids and weakening the enamel.

The result is not immediate. But it is predictable. Now look!

First warning sign: white spots on baby’s teeth

One of the most frequent and ignored signs is this: white spots on baby’s teeth. Parents often describe them to our specialists as “a different white”, “a half-spleen tooth” or “an opaque zone” in their children’s oral hygiene consultation. This may be the beginning of a demineralization, that is, the enamel begins to lose resistance.

🚨The problem is that when you wait for pain, usually you have already lost time. The caries evolves, the stain becomes a cavity and the child enters into a sequence that nobody wants: discomfort, irritability, sleepless nights and treatments that could have been avoided.

"Is it teething?": Inflamed baby gums and what to look for

It is natural that parents associate everything with the birth of teeth. And often, they are right.

In fact, inflamed baby gums can happen by pressure of the tooth approaching the surface, with redness, more salivation and desire to bite.

But here you should be strict: not all inflammation is “just teething”. If there is severe pain to the touch, frequent bleeding, persistent bad breath or lesions that do not improve, it makes sense to evaluate with our dentists.

The difference between a normal process and a problem that needs attention is not decided by intuition, it is decided by clinical signs and a periodic and careful evaluation.

Prevention that works is not complicated: it is consistent

There are parents who look for “the right product” and forget about “the right habit”. Effective prevention, at this stage, does not depend on complex solutions. Depends on consistency.

Oral hygiene should exist early, even before there are many teeth. When there is already at least one tooth, brushing should be a daily and guided gesture. And here comes one of the most common doubts: you should use fluoride paste for baby and quantity.

Fluoride is an ally in the prevention of caries. The critical point is not to dramatize the theme, it is to apply correctly: the amount must be appropriate to the age and the brushing should always be closely followed. It is not about “brushing hard” or “brushing long”. It is about brushing well, with simple and repeated technique that our specialists try to teach parents from an early age.

Pacifier: the right question is not "yes or no", it is "until when"

Another recurring question is the pacifier. And the research appears in a direct and recurrent way: pacifier until what age? The pacifier may be useful at certain stages, but prolonged and constant use can influence the bite and development of the arch.

The goal is not to blame or impose blind rules. The goal is to follow. There are children who leave naturally. Others do not.

The right consultation at the right time: before the pain, not after

Most child oral health problems do not happen because parents “don’t care”. It happens because they call late, when there is already an obvious signal. And this is human.

But there is a way to change: turn the first query into a real prevention query.

A well-made consultation at this stage allows:

That is why the Order of Dentists (OMD) reinforces the importance of early follow-up and parental education in children’s oral health, precisely to prevent rather than remedy.

We had to get here to realize that the correct question is not “do milk teeth matter?”. They matter, of course.
The question is: do you want to wait for pain to appear, or prefer to prevent before the problem has a name?

Schedule your appointment at Clínica Dr. Pedro Mota and trust the advice of our specialist in Pediatric Dentistry, Dr. Joana Nogueira.