How can my child have "baby bottle" tooth decay if she's never had a bottle?

[Beth-TX]

I noticed this afternoon that my almost 3 yr old dd has brownish grey spots on the backs of her front 4 teeth, at the gumline. She hasn't been to the dentist yet, but it looks an awful lot like the pictures of "baby bottle mouth" I've seen.

How can this be? She has never had a bottle, she has occasional sippy cups, but only with water. She rarely has juice, but it's diluted, in a regular cup and usually with a meal. We don't give her fruit roll ups or other sticky treats. She has occasional sweets, but they're not a large part of her diet. We brush her teeth regularly.

I'm a little freaked out and dread seeing the dentist. I just know I'll get crap for night nursing (she's been night weaned since May, but nursed frequently at night before then), although, it's my understanding that breastmilk does not cause cavities.

l'm mostly stricken with the injustice of it all. I thought we were doing pretty well tooth-wise. I'm just sick about these potential cavities. Words of support and comfort would be lovely...

peace, Beth

[kati6110]

baby bottle tooth decay, aka nursing caries. Yes, it does happen. I think if kids are predisposed to cavities, then night nursing will exacerbate that. I know some AP families whose kids' front teeth rotted, and some whose kids have no cavities at all. All of those kids night nursed continuously for years.

They can't give you a hard time about nursing if you've already night weaned, for heaven's sake! The earlier the cavities are caught the better. My advice after having BTDT is

1. Don't show dd that you are fearful or feel bad about her cavities, because she will pick up on that. Try to be positive and supportive.

2. Get recommendations from friends and if possible, a second opinion. All dentists are not the same, and while one might do a pulpotomy and caps, another might just file away the rotten part and fill. Some pediatric dentists will only treat small children in the hospital, and others offer sedation in the office. You need to figure out what is best for you and your dd.

In my son's case, I went with the first dentist we saw without doing much research, and this dentist gave him four caps in front. The caps were a nightmare for the first year. Blood seeped out from underneath, they were very difficult to keep clean. The gums were red and inflamed. dh and I were so close to just having them pulled out. Other parents here have not had such a bad experience with caps though. ds was very young at the time - 18 mo. Maybe the caps were too big or something.

[fromscatteredtribe]

we just found out today that ds4 needs caps on all four teeth...same situation too re diet...so sad! blood seeping out? :

[mamasgirls]

My daughter had baby bottle tooth decay and she had never had a bottle, either. She is still nursing (although not at night anymore), but at that time was nursing throughout the night. We took her to the dentist when she was 22 months old, because I noticed her front 4 teeth were not looking good. She had cavities in 8 teeth- the front 4 and then on each of her back molars, top and bottom. We ended up doing general anesthesia, she got fillings on her bottom 2 molars and caps on the top 2- she also got resin caps on her front 4 teeth- I don't think they look 100% natural, but close enough. Anyway- it really is one of the most draining things we have dealt with, and such hard decisions to make. I know not every child that nurses through the night gets cavities, but that was the only culprit for my daughter- we were avid teeth brushers as well (still are).

Anyway- good luck to you

ETA- We did see 2 ped. dentists to get opinions from both. Other than cost (which was SO different between the 2) they both recommended the exact same treatment. With 8 teeth needing to be fixed- general anesthesia was the best option for us- I wanted the least amount of trauma to her as possible. She did VERY well with all of it. She has not had any issues with bleeding and the caps- there is some slight discoloration on the backs of them- but nobody sees that anyway. She goes back in Nov. for a follow-up so I will bring it up then.

[SolsticeMama]

We have 2 boys who both nursed/nurse through the night. Our first son had "nursing caries" and had 4 caps put on under general anesthesia at 16 months. (since then, the caps have broken several times and we've switched dentists several times) Our second son has no cavities whatsoever. I also thought that breastfeeding could not contribute to cavities, and have read a lot of info. that says breastmilk contains protective properties. We've brushed both sets of teeth and have great nutrition, so I believe it is just something genetically pre-disposed. I know how hard it can be to deal with this, so hugs to you. Find a dentist you're comfortable with, even if you have to get several opinions.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

I dont think that night nursing causes cavities and here is a great article explaining why Link I do know that once a cavity starts tho anything around it will make it worse. But I will not night wean him. He still nurses every 2-3 hours at night and for us the benifits far out weigh any possible risk of more decay. My ds's top 4 teeth came in with weak enamal. When they were just peeking thru the gum you could see something wasnt right and it went downhill from there. I had 2 dentist blame it on night nursing, never went back to them.

My dd was night nursed till she weaned at 32 months and she never had a single problem with any of her teeth till just this past year 5yo. I think genetics play a huge roll in tooth decay.

My oldest brother had the exact same teeth problem as my ds. Same 4 teeth came in with weak enamal.