Who is responsible for taking care of children’s teeth?

Oh no!
Don't tell me you taught some of them to read, too?

Oops!
🤔

As long as they never find out..

Exactly MissAdventure - and I suppose I only looked after children nos 2, 4 and 5 correctly, no. 3 a bit and no. 1 not at all!

It's just come to me.
I knew it!
My sister was right, mum loved HER more than me.

So why did I need lots?
Why did my sister need none at all?

maddyone

Of course they can. They ensure their children clean their teeth properly and they can restict sugar and fizzy drinks.

Exactly. Why has my son never needed a filling? The dentist hasn’t prevented tooth decay. I instilled good dental hygiene habits and he didn’t eat or drink lots of sugar.

maddyone

Ilovecheese

So we don't help neglected children then? Just leave them to it.

Who has said that?

‘but nonetheless the care of children’s teeth, and the prevention of dental decay is wholly the responsibility of the parents’
I think you did?

But maddyone 'Best-intentioned' parents would already be doing the things you mentioned.

Bah! That is, not they is!!

Then they need to stop all this snacking and sipping, as they is also bad for your teeth.
I can't see that happening, somehow, and again, it doesn't seem to be a "couldnt care less" thing.
More like the latest fad.

Of course they can. They ensure their children clean their teeth properly and they can restict sugar and fizzy drinks.

The best intentioned parent can do nothing if there aren't any NHS dentists to take their children to.

I'm envious myself.
I take after the other side of the family, who had quite problematic teeth.
Typical!!

How wonderful it must be to have such strong teeth (and I’m not being sarcastic, I’m genuinely quite envious.) My husband is one of the lucky ones too, but since I wasn’t so lucky I made it my business to ensure my children looked after their teeth. Nonetheless two them had to have four perfectly good teeth taken out and train track braces fitted because their teeth were too squashed. My other child escaped that, and he was the one who needed a filling. I was very upset when my oldest damaged his front tooth whilst playing rugby (he forgot his mouth guard and didn’t tell the teacher) and he has had to have that tooth crowned.

I think it really unpleasant for some posters to criticise others and call them virtuous just for looking after their children’s teeth. It’s something all parents should try to do.

My nan was 80 ish without any, and my mum 80, with just two.

She used to get really cross when asked to take her dentures out, because they were absolutely straight and white too.

You are correct, NotSpaghetti. My Dad was always having fillings and, as a child, so was I despite brushing correctly - though as NHS dentists were paid per treatment, who is to say I needed them? I rarely needed fillings as I grew older …. However despite many fillings when I was young I have only had one tooth extracted and that was due to failed root canal treatment. Thankfully my son must have inherited my Mum’s good teeth, though of course like me he was taught to brush properly and his sugar intake was more limited than mine, though sweets were not banned. He has never needed a filling and is almost 40.

It isn’t just sweets that cause tooth decay. My granddaughter was given raisins as a healthy treat until the dentist advised against it. And I used to give my kids orange juice to drink thinking it was healthier than squash etc not realising that the acidity would be bad for them. And they always had fruit for supper and brushed their teeth afterwards…another thing you’re not supposed to do.Thankfully they seem to have got away with it decay wise. My son ended up with crooked lower teeth because he had overcrowding and this happened after he left home to go to uni; I feel really guilty about it.

My own solution, were I the PM, would be to pay dentists properly for seeing children (and adults too but at least children) but also to go back to having school dentists, because not all parents will take their children to see a dentist.

I would second this maddyone👍

maddyone

Germanshepherdsmum

There will only be more NHS dentists if their contracts pay at least the equivalent of private dentistry - and that’s a lot of money. When we were young private dentists were few and far between and only used by the wealthy. They have become much more accessible. Why should any dentist, after years of training, have to work for peanuts if they have another choice? Paying them more to do NHS work will inevitably see a rise in taxes. People will love that.

And this applies to doctors too, but that’s a whole other discussion.

I agree regarding the dental contractors who run their own practices.
School dentists aren’t private contractors though, they are employed by the NHS directly, in a similar way to community dentists who pick up dental care for some client groups. It is a salaried role that is appealing to dentists who don’t want to run their own practices, and can fit in well with school hours and terms.

Can I please just reiterate what some of us said earlier - some children just DO inherit poor teeth and some are blessed with fabulous ones.

Whilst diet and cleaning and regular dental appointments are obviously very important I have to say there's a lot of smugness on this thread. It is not all down to the way you parented (though clearly enhanced by this).

Children with the same diets and the same dental routine are often found to have very different teeth.

Just saying.

maddyone

Luckygirl
What a good idea, justify the giving of sweets to rot their teeth.
Unbelievable!

There is a difference between justification and understanding.

It's now quite acceptable for a child to still be unable to use cutlery, to not be reliably toilet trained, or to speak clearly, and I don't think that is a "couldn't care less" problem amongst stupid parents.

It is as much a "thing" with better educated, more "able" parents.

MissAdventure

Teachers are taking on roles that arent in their remit more and more, it seems.
It can't be right, or cost effective.

Absolutely right MissA parents seem to be abdicating their role in many cases.

Teachers are taking on roles that arent in their remit more and more, it seems.
It can't be right, or cost effective.