dentist says she needs 4 crowns because they are on the front teeth. this pediatric dentist wants to give her an oral sedative drink, then take her from me (i can't be in the room), give her a local, and put the crowns on, which will take 1 1/2 hours. this is not something i want for my child. this is one of the few dentists in the area that take medicaid. i need a 2nd opinion, but don't know if i can afford it. the waiting room in this place was nuts! there were kids who had been given this sedative and were falling on their heads or their legs just plain wouldn't work! they were literally drunk!
for a pediatric dentist's office there were no bright colors, one toy in the waiting room. the place sucked! it was obvious that they took the liberty of assuming that all poor people are stupid. tell me there are more humane ways to get my kid's teeth crowned!
does anyone know of some good natural or homeopathic methods to strengthen teeth and put cavities at a standstill? has anyone ever had a kid this young with cavities and forgone fillings or crowns because the teeth will be lost in a few years anyway?
does anyone have some good suggestions for getting a resistant 3 year old to brush her teeth and rinse after eating?
feeling helpless in WV,
kelli, mom of luna

Hi,
I don't know alot about this you might want to do some online research on it before you make a decision. I question to the idea of it when they will be losing them but maybe it affects the permanent teeth. That being my daughter (process of adopting...been living with me for 18 months) who is 6 has alot of dental work. From what I understand they admitted her to a childrens hospital and did the work. I think they gave her general anesthesia...not sure. From talking with others it is not uncommon to do that in real young children who need alot of work done. My daughter does has lots of filling and some "caps".

Kelli, I'm in WV too. Where are you located? Maybe I can help.

dentist says she needs 4 crowns because they are on the front teeth. this pediatric dentist wants to give her an oral sedative drink, then take her from me (i can't be in the room), give her a local, and put the crowns on, which will take 1 1/2 hours. this is not something i want for my child. this is one of the few dentists in the area that take medicaid. i need a 2nd opinion, but don't know if i can afford it. the waiting room in this place was nuts! there were kids who had been given this sedative and were falling on their heads or their legs just plain wouldn't work! they were literally drunk!
for a pediatric dentist's office there were no bright colors, one toy in the waiting room. the place sucked! it was obvious that they took the liberty of assuming that all poor people are stupid. tell me there are more humane ways to get my kid's teeth crowned!
does anyone know of some good natural or homeopathic methods to strengthen teeth and put cavities at a standstill? has anyone ever had a kid this young with cavities and forgone fillings or crowns because the teeth will be lost in a few years anyway?
does anyone have some good suggestions for getting a resistant 3 year old to brush her teeth and rinse after eating?
feeling helpless in WV,
kelli, mom of luna Make absolutely certain there is no mercury in the posts of the crowns.
Read Weston Price's book "Nutrition and Physical Degeneration" for how to stop cavities with excellent nutrition.
My guy cooperates with teeth brushing when we both say 'AAAAaaaah' at the top of our lungs. He likes yelling :LOL

Please do not put crowns on your child or yourself - they don't have mercury, but they are full of nickel(stainless steel) and other awful metals. Use bonding-the same composite filling on the top of the tooth - you will need to find skilled dentist for that, if it is that bad. Read books on the subject before you decide like Unimformed Consent by Huggins.

I would try to find another opinion. My son had bad decay and had to have crowns, but on the front teeth it was mostly a matter of aesthetics, so since they will fall out within a year or so, the dentist said wait and see on those, if they get really bad they can do an extraction, which is actually easier than crowns on a child.(also helluva alot cheaper) Look around and see, if the vibe is bad and your child has a bad experience and you "knew" it was wrong, you will feel bad that you went against your instinct...good luck, it's not so bad, once it is over!

I'm in the same boat (almost). My 33 mo old DD has cavities in her rear top molars, and the backs of her top front teeth. I'm *told* it's from nighttime nursing. I'm s-l-o-w-l-y night weaning her; hope to have that conquered by the time she gets the cavities filled. Our latest challenge is that although she has no problem brushing her teeth, she is refusing toothpaste of any kind, flouride or not, doesn't matter. I guess brushing without tp is better than no brushing?? I too would love to hear about any natural/homeopathic ways to strengthen kids' teeth! We are going for a consult to the only pediatric dentist between Vancouver and Calgary in a couple of weeks and apparently DD will have to drink the crazy concoction that makes the kids very dopey. There is NO way I won't be present for the procedure though, let me tell you!! I would much prefer she do it at the regular dentist, but understandably, a needle in the mouth at this young age is likely to tramatize her. I look forward to hearing anyone's suggestions....

My pediatric dentist is a APing parent's DREAM! He has seven kids, all of whom are AP'd. All of them co-sleep and night nurse (or did). DD (now 3.75) has no cavities. Neither DH nor I have any cavities. Ds (2yrs) gets the same care (night nursing, brushed with toothpaste and OralB pro brush 2X daily) as the rest of us and has had four teeth literally rot out of his head. A week or two after the dentist would fill them, they would start to literally show decay again and crumble. The dentist showed us a LOT of research and also told us about his own family to reassure us that we're not being bad parents or anything. If you are practicing good oral hygene and still have issues, it's NOT YOUR FAULT AND IT'S NOT CAUSED BY NURSING ALONE. Every person is BORN with bacteria in their mouth. Some people's bacteria is a nastier strain than others'. This is NOT passed from a parent's mouth while kissing or tasting food. They are just born with it. He said that of his seven kids, five have no cavities at all and two have cavities in every tooth. Apparently, breastmilk alone will never cause cavities. It's the combo of sugar fom other food, nasty bacteria, AND breastmilk that are the tooth killers. Sometimes the bacteria is so nasty that it doesn't matter the flouride level in the toothpaste, or how often you brush, you're just going to get cavities. THere is a product called "Xylitol" which is a fruit sugar, that actually deprives the bacteria of the stuff it needs to cook and eat at the teeth. THere are several products that contain Xylitol, including gums, chews, gels, and toothpastes. You want to check the ingredients list and make sure that the Xylitol is no further down than third on the list to be effective. Then use it between 3 and 8 times a day, especially after eating. This disrupts the bacteria enough to usually slow or even stop the decay. One of Trident's types of gum is apparently really tasty and very effective, I don't remember the name of the type, though, so you'll have to check the ingredients list. My son is going to need the gel and/or the toothpaste, because he's too young for the gum and could choke on the chews that our doctor gave us as samples. However they told us that we can do an online search, and that all the products they've found have tasted really yummy and that you never have to fight with kids to use it. Just to make sure that we used it often enough(3-8 times a day, esp. after meals) and very consistently (EVERY day).
On to your questions about care...our dentist "allows" us into the treatment room. To be quite frank, all you really should have to do is say very firmly, "this is my child and I will accompany him into the treatment room, thank you very much." And then do it. If they say no, take your child and leave. Make sure that you're very calm, no matter how upsetting it is to you; never say "there's nothing to be afraid of" or use the words "fear" "scared" or anything like them, ever, in reference to the dentist,or during the procedure. Those words actually CAUSE the child to feel afraid, even if they weren't before. Do not get in the way (I usually stand at his feet and help to firmly hold his legs still...so I'm touching him and he knows I'm there, and I'm being helpful rather than a hinderance) and know that it will not be pleasant. Your child will be restrained for his own safety, and he will not be happy about it. The drug they give them is also for the greater good. It causes them to tend toward a greater level of relaxation. It also causes them to forget what happened to them, so that they don't associate the dentist with fear for the rest of their lives. This is very important, especially if your child's going to be visiting often! If you're just plain not comfortable with the doctor, I would look for someone else, even if you have to travel to a nearby city or town for the care. We do have to travel, but in my opinion, it is very worth the time and gas. We DID have bonding done on several of his front teeth, NOT caps. Don't give the dentist the option, just tell them that that's the way it'll be. One of the things I've found is that if you act with authority (it is, after all, YOUR child), your authority is not questioned, medicaid or not. Again, if this particular dentist isn't good at bonding, find someone who is.
The dentist did tell us that with a child with normal type bacteria, it's really the brushing that counts. No toothpaste (water only)or toothpaste without flouride are fine, just brush, brush, brush! However, if there is a more assertive bacteria causing cavities, and you are brushing a lot (and well), and it's not making a difference, try flouride toothpaste (this might be one time when you break down and buy into advertising...my daughter started to let us brush her teeth without fighting when we got her Hello Kitty BUBBLEGUM toothpast...we let her choose), and then try xylitol several times a day.
Good luck, and I hope that the stuff we've been through lately helps you!

Oh, one more thing. You can leave the rotten teeth, however they COULD get infected, and at that point it would be a very painful experience for your child, and could become an emergency, depending on how bad the infection is when you find it. If it gets in a nerve or the blood it could cause sepsis and ultimately death. This is a COULD, not a will, but I'm just not willing to take that risk if there is something as simple as a root extraction that could keep it from happening! I didn't say painless, but it's a lot less painful to have a root extraction of your baby tooth (they come out easily, I've seen it done on another child)than an infection in your mouth.

This is what happens when children are given a bottle at bedtime with milk/apple juice or any other sugary substance/acidic substance and not have their teeth brushed.
From birth, a child's mouth should be kept clean with a warm, wet washcloth and when thier first teeth errupt, that's when a tooth brush should be inplemented into thier daily routine. Even if they are just chewing on the brush.
Bottle carries (when a child sleeps with a bottle) is very common and incredibly preventable. Fill a childs bottle with warm water instead of juice or milk when they are past night feeding stage.
There are all porcelain crowns available, but your assistance package my not cover that expence.
The amount of mercury in fillings is so minute, there really is no reason to worry - but if you do, request composite (white) fillings. They are more expensive and do create tooth sensitivity, but they don't contain any trace metals.
The primary teeth are a road-way for adult teeth.
Without them, adult teeth do not form properly.
And just because your dental office isn't 'bright and only has one toy', does not mean that the dental practitioner isn't professional, established and incredibly good at what he does. He may be a fabulous doctor.
That would be a kin to someone looking at your house and making a full and total judgement call about you and your family.
Perhaps the lack of toys in the waiting room is because people don't wait in his office?
And believe me, sedating a child who has multiple crowns and cavities really IS the best way. Try working on a squirming, screaming 4 year old that has been told that 'if he's not good, the doctor will give him a needle'!!! People are constantly telling thier children terrible experiences about the dentist - the doctor can be incredibly stressed out due to these tall tales.

Okay, don't mean to get testy, but my children don't get juice, ever. Nor are they fed any processed sugars. Or processed flours. They get at least five vegetables a day, and usually four of them are raw. They have had impeccable oral hygene imposed upon them since BIRTH. One has cavities, one does not. If you read my above posting, you'll learn that it isn't "carrying around or sleeping with a bottle" that causes caries, but bacteria. Some bacteria are more nasty than others, and more easily turn fruit and veggie sugars into tools to cause decay. The best known way to prevent this bacteria from causing decay is, beyond good oral hygene, using Xylitol three to eight times a day. Not the cessation of night feedings. Again, sorry to be testy, but the old "nursing/bottle caries" line is what gives nighttime feedings a bad name...and keeps people ignorant of what could really help their kids' teeth from disappearing before their eyes! :irked:

That is what impressed me about Weston Price's research... he went beyond the bacteria theory to study the nutrient levels of the diet as the causes of cavities.
Most people he studied never brushed their teeth at all.

Hmm. I'll have to do some reading.

I would keep trying to find a second opinion.
Crowns on front teeth....teeth that will fall out in two years anyway seems awfully drastic.
One of my day care boys went through this last month. They went for a second opinion, and he went to a dentist that just filled the cavities, and you really cannot see them at all. The fillings are white. He will be four in January, his teeth will fall out on their own by the time he is six 1/2, so why put him through everything the first dentist was proposing???
I personally think it's all money. They can charge medicaide for procedures your child may not even need.