4KidsDental.com
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(4 Kids Dental Center - ) 4-Kids Dental Center - Home
Description
Excerpted from the website:
- Cavities, or "holes in the teeth" are caused by a disease called dental caries. This is one of the most common bacterial infections in children and is caused by a group of germs known as streptococcus mutans. Once teeth begin to erupt, children can get "strep mutans" from contact with parents or caregivers. In our society, with kissing our toddlers, tasting or sharing their foods, etc., it is impossible not to pass "strep mutans" to our children if it is present in our saliva. Whether this germ does or does not attack the teeth depends on heredity. For many children, the immune system produces antibodies which adequately block the "strep mutans" from attacking the teeth. For these children, disease (decay) may not develop even if brushing/flossing the teeth is not ideal. Generally however, if mom or dad have or had significant decay and pass not just the germ but their lack of immunity to "strep mutans" to the child, then the child will be equally "cavity prone".
