How Children’s Teeth Erupt and Fall Out
The prospect or arrival of a new baby is often a true blessing, that goes without being said (except we said it)! However, during the earliest days of a new child’s life, your child may present you with some unique challenges. This becomes even more of a reality after the age of six months when a child begins the teething process and, as parents, you have to weather a whole new storm in terms of difficulties and uncharted waters as you experience life with a baby who is living through discomfort and pain. One of the best ways to prepare for this period is by educating yourself on the details of how children’s teeth erupt and why they eventually lose them as they move toward growing their adult teeth. While teething may be a fact of life, knowing what’s coming will help you to prepare how to navigate this chapter.
How Do Children’s Teeth Erupt?
As mentioned above, you’ll first start seeing your children beginning the teething process around age six months. In the initial six months of your child’s life, the baby teeth have been forming from the tooth buds in their jaw; from here, they proceed with their painful upward journey through the gums and out into the mouth. The first teeth that will begin coming in are typically the incisors or the ‘bunny teeth’, which are situated directly in the front of the mouth. These teeth are often first noticed by nursing mothers when their baby begins testing them out while feeding. From this point until the age of 3, you can expect a steady progression of teeth coming in until they’ve gotten their full set of 20 baby teeth.
Where Do These Teeth Come From?
Teeth are formed by the previously mentioned ‘tooth buds’, which will also be responsible for the formation of their adult teeth. Some children may also have a set of third molars. These teeth existed when our diets consisted of much harder to chew and digest food than we have now, but some people still have them and they are more commonly known as ‘wisdom teeth’. When these teeth come in, they can cause problems; however, the good news is that you don’t typically have to deal with them until their later teenage years.
How Children’s Teeth Loosen & Fall Out
If you’ve ever wondered exactly what the processes are that lead to baby teeth loosening and falling out, here’s where you learn more! Basically, what happens is that the tooth buds form a whole new set of teeth that start growing up under the old teeth. In the process, the old roots are killed off and the teeth get pushed up and out of the way, getting loose before they fall out. The first sign that this is happening may simply be your child announcing recognition of a loose tooth. Although you may be tempted to help the tooth come out, it’s better to let it go through the process on its own and fall out naturally. When you try to remove a tooth prematurely, it can result in breaking a still living root, and this can lead to infection.
If you’ve recently had a new baby or if you’re expecting one to be coming along soon, contact us and we’ll be happy to further discuss this with you!
