Bloody hell, alarming advice about preventing tooth decay in your children.

[RockLover]

I've just discovered that I need a root canal and another filling (that makes 7 at 36 years old) and it's prompted me to look for advice in caring for my children's teeth and what I read has been terrifying.

According to all advice it should start when a baby is in the womb and if the woman eats a high sugar diet when pregnant the child will be more prone to tooth decay. Both my pregnancies were blighted by hyperemesis (DD, 6) and constant nausea for 9 months with DS (12 weeks) and as a result my diet was horrific (biscuits and fizzy drinks constantly, it's all I could tolerate)! I am completely panicked now that I have ruined my children's dental health before they have even started out in life.

Also DD does have a fondness for sweet things (including fruit) which according to all the advice, they shouldn't be eating, they should be sticking to savoury foods that don't have natural sugars in. DD's teeth have been fine so far and she didn't have any cavities at her last check-up, she is due another check up next week and I am hoping against hope everything is still ok. Some dentists recommend that children get sealants on their teeth, has anyone on here had this done for their child and at what age was it done?

Maybe that's what the dentist in the video was alluding to HSMM, I didn't have morning sickness in that I never vomited, but I felt severely sick for the whole pregnancy. The only things that made me feel any better were sugary foods and fizzy drinks (which I'm pretty sure caused the decay I am having to have work on this week) and I am now really worried that DS' teeth will suffer as a result of me eating so much sugar when he was in the womb.

I had hyperemesis with DD for the first 5 months of the pregnancy and was in hospital for rehydration. I can't remember how much sugar I ate in total with her, but I know I had chocolate every day when I was feeling better, so far her teeth are fine. She has a check-up on Thursday so I am hoping that she will get the all clear again, she is 6 but I still insist on brushing her teeth as she doesn't do a great job herself.