Your child's first visit to the dentist.

      Over the years, the recommendation has changed about when to first take your child to the dentist. One factor is that across the U.S. the number of cases of cavities and tooth decay (dental caries) has risen significantly. One of the big reasons for that is that more and more children are drinking bottled water. It is tap water that has fluoride. Bottled water usually has no significant amount of fluoride. Without that fluoride, more and more children are having early tooth decay, cavities, and/or dental caries.
     The current recommendation is for the children to see the dentist by 12 months of age. The complete recommendations are available here at the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry's website. One thought: remember to add your child to your dental coverage during their first year so that they are covered by this age.
     There are many excellent dentists in the area. Two pediatric dentists that we recommend the most are Dr. JoJo Strickler (Hilliard Pediatric Dentistry at 5138 Norwich Street in Hilliard; 614-876-5500) and Dr. Robert Haring (100 N. High Street in Dublin; 614-761-3361). Call our office if you have further questions.

Note as of January 15th, 2014: We have heard feedback from parents and dentist offices to realize that each dentist office is handling this a little differently. If you have questions or concerns, having your child seen at 1 year of age for their first visit to the dentist makes perfect sense. However, if you do not have specific concerns before, make their first visit whenever the office you pick recommends.