I was told to wean! What to do with dentists?

[SashaBear]

We took 3 year old DS to a pediatric dentist last week. Poor thing has 4 cavities and 3 weak spots. Anyway they recommended that kids start coming at age 1 and want my daughter to start coming. After DS's exam we were taken to a conference room to discuss brushing his teeth and his next two appointments. The hygenist asked if we had any other questions so I asked if there was anything else we should do for DD. Here's our conversation:

Denial Hygenist: You're still nursing right?
Me: Yes.
DentalHygenist: And you are going to be weaning soon?
Me: No
DentalHygenist: How long do you plan to nurse her?
Me: I don't know 2 or 3.
DentalHygenist (eyes wide): Well we recommend weaning at 1 . . .
Me: I won't do that.
DentalHygenist: You will need to keep a washcloth at night to wipe her teeth down. That's probably why your son has poor teeth. BM has lots of sugar in it.

I thought she was a bit rude in the beginning so I dealt the rudeness back to her hoping to give her the impression that this was not a negotiable topic. So my biggest problem is that they recommend weaning at 12 months.
I talked to my ped about it and she said I should take some info to them. She assured me that night nursing probably did not cause my son's cavities.

DH doesn't think I should worry about it. He gets a bit tired of my soap box. Also if anyone has a link about nursing and cavities research could you please post it?

[PassionateWriter]

wow....its not bad enough that ppl get it from their family and friends..and pediatricians (alot of them), now its from teh dentists too? argh!

good luck1

[IfMamaAintHappy]

got same schpiel recently.. my oldest, who nursed till 2y 7 mo has 8 cavities.. said they were all from her first 2-3 yrs of life and nursing after brushing/at night. he totally discounted that my MIL and SIL had full dentures at 35 and that genes might have anything to do with it. For our pediatric dentist, it was all crappy eating habits, bad brushing, and extended nursing. Bad mama, bad bad mama, you did this to your child.

*sigh*

So she is having 4 teeth pulled and 5 cavities filled under general anesthesia at the hospital this summer. She is 8 yrs old and they said they would need either 5 visits to the office or one dental surgery, so we opted for the surgery.

[MonkeysRUs]

http://www.mothering.com/articles/gr.../cavities.html

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/older-baby/tooth-decay.html

http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/caries.htm

The above links have some good info.

[Claire and Boys]

Its genetic...not nursing, imo. my ds1 has perfect teeth and nursed till he was almost 2. Stupid dentist... I think they are just extending the whole "no more bottles at 1" to include breastfeeding when it's really not the same at all.

[PatioGardener]

Here is an awesome link:
http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/
Dr Palmer is a dentist. His info on cavities is here:
http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/caries.htm
and some articles here:
http://www.brianpalmerdds.com/bfeed_caries.htm

ETA: Cross posted with MonkeysRUs.

[the_lissa]

Nursing does not cause cavities. Can you find another dentist? I would be very wary of someone who did not keep up with current research/

[KirstenMary]

I have done a lot of research on this since both of my daughters have lost teeth because of caries.

In a nutshell, nursing alone does not cause the decay. Think about it...how on earth would humans have survived if the only food available caused something so necessary for survival to rot away??? However, once we introduce solids to a child's diet, the sugars in the solids combined with the bacteria in the mouth (genetic) combined with the sugars in BM combined with the genetic condition of the child's teeth can cause decay. So while is is not just nursing, it can be a combination of factors.

So though D continues to night nurse (we are CLWing), I do wipe her teeth after every night nursing...as long as I am awake. And as soon as we get up in the morning, we brush her teeth.

Sadly, D is having two extractions tomorrow. Her teeth are so soft that a dental pick can wear them away. Thankfully, though, the rest of her teeth are fine.

Good luck!

[KirstenMary]

Originally Posted by IfMamaAintHappy

got same schpiel recently.. my oldest, who nursed till 2y 7 mo has 8 cavities.. said they were all from her first 2-3 yrs of life and nursing after brushing/at night. he totally discounted that my MIL and SIL had full dentures at 35 and that genes might have anything to do with it. For our pediatric dentist, it was all crappy eating habits, bad brushing, and extended nursing. Bad mama, bad bad mama, you did this to your child.

*sigh*

So she is having 4 teeth pulled and 5 cavities filled under general anesthesia at the hospital this summer. She is 8 yrs old and they said they would need either 5 visits to the office or one dental surgery, so we opted for the surgery.

My husband is 43...and has dentures.

[KnitLady]

I don't believe that nursing is bad for teeth unless it is mixed with solids. In other words, I think it is best to brush nurslings teeth really well before bedtime. This will help remove any leftover food/bacteria from the teeth and gums before the long night of nursing.

Most dentists are suspect of breastfeeding. I do think that brushing at least twice a day is important.

My poor DS recently underwent GA to have his teeth repaired. I think it is a combination of genetics and me not brushing his teeth very well early on (after we introduced solids and before we noticed decay). Tooth brushing is now a non-negotiable here.

[Janice in Canada]

I own a Yahoo group just for this topic - check it out.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group...oungkidsteeth/

Janice

[homewithtwinsmama]

There is so much good data out there about this its seriously unacceptable to spout this crap. I have five kids - four with teeth and a baby. All were breastfed day and night until ages 30months to 3.5 years old. NONE have cavities. But then their father and I both have very very strong teeth and have not had serious dental issues. AND I brush with non-flouride toothpaste for them until they reach age 5 and can spit well.

[lacysmommy]

My children both night nursed (DD1 weaned at 3) but unfortunately they both have bad teeth and DD2 is undergoing general anesthesia tomorrow to fix some of her problems. I have very strong teeth, but their dad needs a partial denture already and he's only 30. So I'm leaning more toward genetic predisposition. Fortunately I've found a dentist who hasn't said one single word about nursing to me and is just a wonderful person.

[sharon71]

I got the a similar "request" in Feb but wasn't told to wean altogether but to night wean.
However DD weaned on her own April 5th 1 day after she turned 32 months old.

[delly]

Yeah - I don't tell my ped dentist that we BF at night.
Because I know they'll just get on my case.
I have been asked "is DC having a bottle at night?" and I say no, because, well, she's not. And I don't think it's the same thing, and it's not their business to make me feel guilty about it. I know what they think. I know the risks. DS did have one chip on a front tooth that started to decay and had to be filled - but the consensus seems to be it was more of a chip that exposed the tooth to decay. He's 4 and weaned a little after 2, but DD is still nursing and she'll be 2 next month, so I still have to watch my step at the ped dentist's office.

I take care of DD's teeth. I always brush her teeth with a toothbrush and baby toothpaste (not just a washcloth) before bedtime and before naptime because the best info I could find indicated that breastmilk by itself was fairly low risk b/c of antibacterial properties, but breastmilk that could attach to food and sugars that were already on the teeth could be decaying. I'm not an expert. But that's what I heard. So that's what I do. But -and I've said this before - my feeling about the ped dentist telling someone to wean is that the dentist is only thinking about teeth, not the whole child, and while healthy teeth are important, DD's teeth are only one part of her, and the rest of her is just as important. So for me, the benefits of nursing outweigh the risk right now.

[Kate'smommy]

Our ped dentist told us it was a combination of nursing without wiping ds's gums/teeth and me kissing him with my germy mouth (because I had cavities years ago). He seemed less interested in the info that ds used to hold food in his mouth for hours and clamp his mouth shut when we tried to clean his mouth out and brush. DD nursed much more often at night and I kiss her just as much, and she has perfect teeth. There were many other problems with this dentist, including paranoia about me going back to check on the kids during their cleanings and pretending oral sedation had no risks, so we are not going back.
If only there was a national list of AP friendly dentists, because they are hard to find.

[polykow]

Originally Posted by Janice in Canada

I own a Yahoo group just for this topic - check it out.

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group...oungkidsteeth/

Janice

I actually just stope reading their posts last week or so as there have been too many talks about weaning.
There was even a mom that used something on her breast so it would not taste good and child would wean.
I just could not stand it.
Anyways.
There is another group on yahoo caled alternativekidsteeth and its more alternative.

[MilkTrance]

Um, if EBF caused cavities, why are cavities in early human remains so rare? I doubt that Neanderthal children were poppin' Gerber toddler snacks.

[Janice in Canada]

Originally Posted by polykow

I actually just stope reading their posts last week or so as there have been too many talks about weaning.
There was even a mom that used something on her breast so it would not taste good and child would wean.
I just could not stand it.
Anyways.
There is another group on yahoo caled alternativekidsteeth and its more alternative.

Really??? I don't read every post, but I don't recall seeing this specific post about someone weaning and using something on her breasts, especially in the past week. Are you sure it is the same list we are talking about?

Janice

[miss_sonja]

Flossing is really important. There are floss holders (not the one use ones, but a refillable handle) that make it easier.

Anecdotally, my now-8 year old nursed 'til age 4, though she did night wean around 3 due to loss of milk during pregnancy. She's been to the dentist yearly since 18 months. No dental caries at all. She's been flossed & brushed nightly too.

my 4 yr old though, recently had two cavities filled. Her teeth are tighter together and she's harder to floss. She also loves sugar and eats more of it than her sister did. Same nursing profile.

I think genetics play a big part. I think flossing is crucial. BM on clean teeth is neutral, wish I had the reference for it. Modern dentistry is like modern medicine, a lot of guessing and opinions without a lot of facts.