Tartar on 3yo teeth - any dentists around??

[Rusalina]

I’m so very upset to have discovered my 3 year old has hard tartar build up at the gumline of his top molars, the one furthest back on each side.

I am really not a careless person when it comes to teeth - I have never had a cavity or a filling in my life. My children drink only water except for milk with breakfast and after dinner. They’ve literally never once yet drank juice or squash. I count 120 seconds aloud when I brush their teeth so I can stop counting when they’re being uncooperative to be sure I’m getting the full 2 minutes of brushing. They have never eaten sweets and they’ve only had chocolate twice in their whole lives so far. They don’t snack between meals, and I always give them fruit before a savoury meal rather than after to try and minimise sugar persisting on the teeth. I even use an interdental brush and a floss harp every day for my eldest’s (the 3yo in question) bottom front teeth as I find he gets plaque build-up there. He uses a proper oral-b electric toothbrush.

So please believe me when I say that it can’t be a lack of effort or care on my part - I’ve obviously just been an idiot. He has always been difficult with brushing his molars, and so I think I have been so focused on getting the chewy bit (I’m sorry I have no idea what to call it - does that make sense at all? The side of the molar that chews?) clean that I have totally forgot to be concerned about the side and gumline.

It’s really hard to convince him to get a good look at his teeth, hence why it’s not been noticed by me and therefore been able to harden into tartar 😭 I feel so stupid and incredibly guilty

SO my question is this - will his dentist remove it or is there no point asking? The dentist we see is very good with my teeth, but he’s quite young and newly qualified - I feel he isn’t totally comfortable with children yet. He seemed a bit stressed at the first appointment he had with my 3yo, where my 3yo screamed and refused to open his mouth - his previous dentist would at least try and coax him and also have a look in during screams if that makes sense. We had to move to a different dentist as the old one reduced her caseload and moved us to this new dentist who has started at the practice. We’ve seen him twice now, and he hasn’t yet been able to look in my son’s mouth.

I am reading lots of US-based websites saying toddler tartar needs to be removed, but I can’t seem to find anything suggesting British dentists will actually do it. My 3yo struggles with sensory things and has a speech delay so explaining these things to him is still difficult, and he is very afraid of anything medical including dentists. It ALWAYS ends in hysterical screaming. I cannot at all imagine that he will comply - how will they keep him still? I’m just so worried that this tartar will cause a cavity or gum disease

thanks in advance and sorry for the essay 🙏

Bump 🙏

It sounds like you're a perfect mum so why not just take them to the dentist?

Sorry that's madness

Is this a wind up thread?
Poor kids

@EldermileniummamI don’t understand what that sarcastic comment was for - my dentist isn’t open until Monday. I wanted some advice on what to expect

@hellohellooo no idea what your problem is but hope you have a good Sunday

Maybe you need to use a slightly harder and smaller toothbrush that cleans better. Sometimes a newer toothbrush makes all the difference.
Look at Curaprox, they have more filaments are gentle but give a thorough clean.
Nothing you do today will make any difference until tomorrow.
See the dentist and they'll advise better than me.
No sugary drinks is the best thing you ever did for your child's teeth. I'm not exaggerating.
Dry fruit, including raisins, are also very bad for children's teeth, so if you don't offer these yet, keep it this way.
I'm sure this is a case if changing the way you brush teeth only slightly to reach the problem area better.
Also, remember, our teeth are different and some people are more prone on buildup in certain areas than others. It's just a matter of paying attention to these areas.

Thank you @Branster- I’ve just been looking at Curaprox, the kids ones seem to only be manual. Would you say this is better than an oral b electric one? I always worry I’m not doing it well with a manual. We change the head on his electric quite often, but he clamps down on it a lot whilst brushing so even after a day or two it’s not looking great!!

Thank you for all the advice. I mentioned in my OP that he gets plaque build up on his front bottom teeth, which is an area I’ve always had to pay close attention to for my own teeth too. My dentist mentioned this is likely because salivary glands are there. I wonder if the salivary glands in his cheeks are next to the affected molars, as I suppose that would track with that. Maybe we both have funny saliva or something

I wouldn't say a manual brush, if used correctly, is worse than electric.

Although I might be biased. I only use Curaprox myself since I discovered the brand a good few years back and it cleans incredibly well. I think it's gentler on gums (but that's part of my personal not entirely scientific obsession with oral health and I'm a lot older than 3, so terrified of causing any damage to gums for when I become old)

Everyone else in my house is on electric toothbrushes. I never got on with them myself. Personal preference.

Possibly your little one finds the toothbrush uncomfortable at the base of the affected teeth so not brushing as thoroughly, maybe he moves too much at that point because it is uncomfortable so even you can't help.
Have you tried using the toothbrush without turning it on?

I'm definitely not an expert, but I just feel a small brush, gently used, manually, might get him used to a more thorough clean in that spot. And you can alternate between manual and electric for a while, just until you get back on track.

Take him to the dentist every 6 months (you probably already started this), purely to get him used to the visits.

And I think you are amazing for taking oral health very seriously. Everyone should do that.
Look up xylitol tablets to see if they are suitable for very young children after meals.

Hi OP, my kids have the same - tartar build up - despite thorough brushing with both manual and electric every day. The dentist say that it is genetic and some people just have more minerals in their saliva that stick to teeth and solidify. We get cleanings every three to four months.
if we use a harder toothbrush we can go longer than four months. After brushing, have you done a 'scratch' test? It's what I call scratching the teeth after brushing to feel for the furry coating which means you haven't brushed hard enough, or used a hard enough toothbrush.

It's nothing to be ashamed of and doesn't mean that you're not brushing properly!

@Branster thank so much for all your advice - you’re very knowledgable! I’ve ordered the Curaprox one, and we will give it a go. I have tried using the electric one without turning it on, but it doesn’t seem to make much difference to him. Well, some days he seems to prefer it off but most times he does better with it on. I’m thinking you might be onto something that a smaller brush might be less objectionable to him.

Yes, he’s been going to the dentist for a while but he just hates it so much, they can never look at his teeth in any meaningful way. Our old dentist was even letting him come every 6 weeks just to try and get him used to it, but it didn’t seem to help at all.

I’ve now been looking up xylitol as per your recommendation, and I am falling down a rabbit hole now! So interesting

@PeppermintPatty10 Sorry to hear your children suffer with it too. I will definitely try and see how his teeth feel after brushing tonight, but I’m not sure how agreeable he will be!

It’s incredible what an effect genetics can have. My dad for example has very yellow teeth but they seem to be absolutely indestructible. I am confident he has never seen floss in his life as he’s just not the type, and I really cannot imagine him paying much attention to proper brushing technique!! He’s in his 60s and has never had a filling or anything of the sort, he sees a dentist every ten years or so if that, but each time they say his teeth are totally fine - the last time he went they didn’t even scale them as they said he was fine without it. My mum on the other hand has lovely naturally white teeth but they’re very weak and she’s always having to have work done on them.

Find a different dentist? It's so important at this young age that he is relaxed about dentists.
We're all different. Our saliva is different, teeth shaped differently, gums lines are different, bacteria is different. It's a matter of finding the weaker points and keeping an eye on these for the rest of life.
It definitely is nothing to be embarrassed about.
Keep at it!
Chewing raw vegetables is supposed to be good for teeth health and developing stronger jaws.

I took my 6 year old to the dentist last week as she had tartar on her two adult teeth at the bottom. She’s got none on her baby teeth at all. I was surprised she had it so badly as we also use a kids Oral B electric brush morning and night and have done for years, so I thought her teeth were getting a thorough cleaning. The dentist just scraped it off for her, so definitely get an appt and they should just remove it.

Don't beat yourself up, my 5 year old has never eaten anything, he's been tube fed his entire life (he's never even taken a bottle as a baby) yet he still managed to get tartar build up on one or two of his molars. The dentist did manage to scrape it off during a recent visit and so far it's stayed off but teeth cleaning here is difficult as he has an unsafe swallow so often needs help to clear any saliva from his mouth, it's a fine line here between getting his teeth clean and making him vomit which, in turn, is no good for his teeth either.

@Branster easier said than done where I live unfortunately. Though I am fairly certain a different dentist would make little difference anyway, he has the same reaction for anything he perceives as being medical unfortunately.

thank you for the kind words and advice @Habbyhadno and @Seawolves - good to hear that it is something dentists can/will do for young children. I rang the dentist today and they’re going to let me know if he can see his old dentist who he was slightly more comfortable with - and who was more comfortable with him!🙏