Confused about flouride treatments

[ktmama]

Hi mamas! My dd (age 9) has had six cavities in her life - all in baby teeth. I think this is mostly from drinking LOTS of juice at a young age and eating LOTS of dried fruit. Other than that, she's had a really healthy diet. I will be doing some more research on diet/healing decay, but right now I need some input.

She brushes with floride toothpaste and flosses twice a day. She is due to go to the dentist next week and I'm wondering if I should decrease her flouride treatments or stop them altogether. Twice yearly cleanings and flouride tx isn't helping her decay, so why do it? Any input is greatly appreciated, including risks of routine flouride tx.

[beth144]

IMO there are better methods of reducing decay other than twice yearly in office fluoride tx. nothing substitutes for good homecare (brushing/flossing), but there are tx you can add to this. ask about prescription strength fluoridated toothpaste. this can be used on a weekly basis to help remineralize teeth. be careful though. if your water supply is fluoridated you want to be careful that you are not getting too much fluoride in the body. i personally am not a big fan of systemic fluorides (water systems, pills). i like topical much better (toothpastes, varnishes, etc.). xylitol (sugar made from birch bark) is good for helping to prevent decay. you can find it at most health food stores. lots of sugar-free gums use it also (Trident). i also like giving 2 minute egg timers to my younger patients. this is the minimum amount of time for brushing. HTH

[ktmama]

Beth, thanks so much for replying to my question. Can I ask some more - I'm so confused by all the differing info out there!

1. Will it HURT my dd to have flouride tx twice a year?
2. She brushes and flosses 2x a day and is still getting cavities. Will flouride tx HELP her or is there another problem?
3. What else do you recommend in terms of nutrition/diet besides the obvious such as limiting sugar/juice/sticky foods?

Thank you sooooo much, mama!

[JaneS]

I personally wouldn't use fluoride on my DS. It's a neurotoxin and also creates very brittle enamel.

Thoughts on Fluoride thread:
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=433092