Newspaper: SUN PUBLICATIONS

Date: 3/1/2000

Day of Week: Wednesday

Edition: NAPERVILLE SUN

Section: NEWS

Page: 42

Headline: Open wide; Make smiles a priority for your preschooler

Byline: Sara Snyder / STAFF WRITER

PhotoBy: Photo courtesy of Sherman Oaks Dental

Caption: Braden Klaisle works with the dental tools at Sherman Oaks Dental Office in Naperville. Braden, along with his classmates from Lisle's Kindercare preschool, learned about diet, nutrition and preventative care of the mouth as part of a new outreach program at the office. It brings preschoolers in to get acquainted with the dental office and procedures.

Title: Health/Fitness

Notes: Article also in LS, 3/31/2000, p22.

Is there anything that makes your hair stand on end like the sound of a dentist's drill? Do you shudder at the thought of having to sit in an examining chair while a dental tool is poked at your teeth?

You are not alone. Many adults view the dental office as a frightening place if they were at one time subjected to traumatic procedures or their parents simply didn't put a priority on teaching proper dental health.

In recent year, technology and a better-educated public have brought about a change in attitude for the younger generation. Dentists are taking a proactive part in that education by creating friendly atmospheres in their offices and catering directly to children.

In its new outreach program, Sherman Oaks Dental in Naperville brings in preschoolers to acquaint them with a dentist's office and the procedures they might encounter there.

Even prior to touring the office, the 4-year-old visitors from a local day care center were well versed on the importance of a healthy diet and the detriments of sweets to their teeth.

"Can anyone tell me what would be a healthy snack?" Mary Ellen Pleickhardt, director of dental health education at Sherman Oaks, quizzed students sitting cross-legged on the floor in the waiting room.

Carrots and oranges were among the right answers springing from the lips of these babes. But, Pleickhardt continued, cookies aren't necessarily bad snacks; things like gummy bears and hard candies that get stuck in your teeth can be very bad snacks.

"Anything that goes down quickly is not as bad as something that a child sucks on or that sits on the teeth," dentist Bryan Weyneth said.

And, while parents understand how important it is to brush children's teeth before bedtime, Weyneth said they still give children syrupy medicines after brushing and before bed. Medicines and fruit juices should never be given to children before they lie down for the night, he said, as the sugars in these liquids can sit on the teeth and quickly decay enamel.

Schools of thought vary on when a child should make his or her first trip to the dentist.

Michael Peske, a Naperville pediatric dentist, suggests bringing a child in when his or her first tooth appears or at least before the first birthday. The visit is more for the parents than the children, because they need to be versed on proper infant dental hygiene.

Peske says, too, problems can be caught before they become serious. Baby caries, cavities in infant teeth caused by bottle feeding, is an obvious example of a problem that might be detected in those early months of life, he said.

Weyneth says a first dental visit should be when child is 3 years old and can tolerate sitting in an examining chair. He or she then learns the basics of a healthy diet and proper brushing and flossing techniques.

"We try to give them a good, positive experience," Weyneth said.

Of course, if a child has teeth exhibiting signs of discoloration or perhaps mottled-looking enamel, he or she should be brought to the dentist as soon as possible. Brown holes or spots are signs of decay and cavities, while the mottled appearance might be due to fluorosis, an over exposure to fluoride.

Here in Naperville, city water contains fluoride to protect residents' teeth, but those residents who still use well or bottled water are putting their teeth at risk if they don't use another form of fluoride application, which is found in most toothpastes today.

On one of their first visits to the dentist, children are given a fluoride treatment that Weyneth calls "an armor coating for teeth." Then, prior to 6 years old, children's permanent teeth should be coated with sealant, which seals off molars' crevices to prevent cavities.

Dentist Lydia Sosenko suggests parents begin teaching dental care as early as possible. Children who see parents brushing and flossing will follow suit. Toddlers can be given a brush and allowed to "get used to the feel" of it in their mouths, but, until they are able to spit, they should not be allowed to have toothpaste on their toothbrush.

When a child has mastered spitting, only a pea-sized drop should be used to minimize the chance of swallowing toothpaste, she said, and parents need to check over the teeth to be sure they were properly brushed.

At Sherman Oaks Dental, Pleickhardt and the staff divide their young visitors into three groups. While one shift gets to view an American Dental Association cartoon video about a child's visit to the dentist, the second group goes to see the dental hygienist who teaches them how to properly brush their teeth using a stuffed animal (a horse with horse teeth, to be exact) and in another examining room, the third group gets a lesson in cavity filling from the dentists. The drill, "Mr. Speedy," has "headlights" to help view the inside of the mouth and a small hand-held camera is used to take video pictures of the children's smiles.

Peske's office looks very different from the traditional dental scenario. The waiting room is adorned with animation cels. Along the wall are child-sized chairs and a counter where waiting patients can do a puzzle or read story books.

Peske says he opts for puzzles over video games because "you can always tell a kid they can come back and finish the puzzle, but if you waited for a video game to be over, it might be many lives away."

Instead of a doctor's lab coat, Peske wears a denim scrub shirt. His casual attire, he said, makes the atmosphere a little less intimidating for the children he treats. The examining areas, with their brightly colored dental chairs, have no division between them so the open room allows patients to see each other and feel more at ease with procedures.

He said the art of distraction comes in very handy when working with children. Young patients are given the dental tools to see and touch and, before he begins any procedure foreign to the child, he encourages them to count fingers and teeth using the tools so they understand the harmlessness of an exam.

Like his colleagues, Peske recommends parents supervise brushing to be sure children are getting the job done correctly. He likens brushing to washing grimy hands and fingernails; children do not have the manual dexterity to get absolutely clean, especially under the nails. Neither, he said, can they get the plaque out from between and behind their teeth.

Young patients can be shown the effectiveness of brushing through chewing tablets or swishing disclosing solution around their mouths. The solution sticks to plaque and can pinpoint problem brushing areas.

Although his young patients might be more demanding and sometimes a little more trouble, Peske said he likes making children's experience at the dentist one they enjoy.

"I like working with children," he says. "I like their energy and their honesty. They're really genuine."

And the most daunting question he gets?

"They want to know if I know the Tooth Fairy," Peske said.

*****

TIPS FOR TAKING CARE OF CHILDREN'S TEETH

Infants should not fall asleep with bottles; sugar content of formula can decay erupting teeth. Juices and medicines should be consumed prior to brushing, to avoid syrup clinging to teeth. Allow toddlers to get used to having a toothbrush in their mouths, but, until they learn not to swallow toothpaste, brush only with water. Once children can spit, allow a pea-sized drop of toothpaste on their toothbrush. Have permanent teeth coated with sealant before age 6. Avoid allowing children to eat sweets that sit on their teeth, such as hard or gummy candies. Instead, encourage healthy snacks or cookies.