Guilty Mom Seeking Comfort over 3 Yr Olds Mouth of Silver.

My son has to fill 8 cavities soon and I feel bad about it myself, but it has nothing to do with hygiene. It's the same sippy cup addiction for bed time. You could take comfort in the fact that those baby ones will soon fall out at 6/7 and his permanent ones will come in beautiful. I feel better just knowing I am not the only one with that issue.

Stop beating yourself up!!! This much decay is not due to neglect. It is either genetics or bacterial or a combo of both. Most likely the teeth were weak before they even errupted for them to all 'go' at once like this. Did you know that parents can innoculate their kids towards having cavities by transferring bacteria from their mouth to the kids? This doesn't sound like the case for you though. They are discovering more & more about dental care everyday.

My advise would be to form a relationship NOW with a really good hygienist. He/she is going to be your partner in making sure when these baby teeth fall out, the adult teeth remain healthy. Once they understand the genetics behind it, they will probably recommend cleanings 4x a year, remineralization treatments, extra flouride rinses, etc. Also, I'd look for a dental office that has digital xray. The level of detail that can be obtained from digital xray is way beyond that of film. They can x-ray and then run diagnotic tools to determine the density of enamel, weak spots, etc so these things can be treated before becoming full blown decay. I work in the dental industry and was amazed the first time I saw this done! They were able to visually identify a potential problem on my tooth, then run diagnostics to see if the decay had made it past the enamel yet. Good luck!

Don't really know what to say that would comfort you. I am sorry you feel guilty about it, but I know genetics play such a big role in the condition of your teeth. As a child I loved soda and was not very good at brushing my teeth and never flossed and I never had a cavity still as an adult although my habits of teeth brushing have changed I still havent had a cavity.
My father on the other hand has very good dental hygiene habits and still ends up with cavities all the time.
As long as you are doing what you can to keep his teeth healthy there is nothing more you can do. I have even heard that your saliva has a lot to do with the condition of your teeth. Try not to feel guilty, I am sure you are doing what you can.. good luck with his teeth.

Your concern is understandable. However, these are his baby teeth and they will fall out around 6-7 years of age. ( My son fell pushing a dump truck and had a gray front tooth that just recently fell out. I can understand why you feel this way.) Beside the fact that these fillings are temporary, there is something else to consider: the health of his adult teeth as they arrive.
If his adult teeth develop cavities, silver fillings are not the best choice. After about 10+ years, cavities can develop underneath--yes underneath- the fillings, and you will never know it. White fillings actually bond to the tooth. I recently had my back molar fillings replaced with composites, and my dentist found decay underneath the filling that did not show up on x-rays.
So if I were in your situation, I would wean my son from apple juice, brush two times a day and avoid lots of sweets. I would take him in for regular check ups every 6 months, and I would pay the extra $50.00 for a white composite filling if he needed it. His adult teeth need to last him a lifetime.

Good luck!

My husbands family is one worse than you genetics speaking. Nearly all the kids have to have all of their baby teeth pulled by the age of 4 because between age 3 & 5 their baby teeth turn into rotting mush. Then their adult teeth slowly come in, and while still bad, they're waaaaay better than the baby teeth. We got super lucky because our kiddo got "my" teeth... but I hug my SIL a lot when people are jerks to her. She says it's genetic and they give lectures on how THEIR kids didn't blah blah blah.

Before modern dentistry & antibiotics his family was lucky to have only 1-2 surviving children out of 10 (because of the infection from the rotting teeth).

So every time you see your silver lining, give your toddler a great big hug because they're ALIVE.

Well, for one thing these are his baby teeth. They will fall out... My 2nd daughter already lost two teeth before she turned 5. YES- it is genetics. I have a HUGE sweet-tooth- and hardly EVER floss, and sometimes don't brush, but have only had one cavity in my whole life. My husband, who is Mr. Good Oral Hygiene, has had a LOT of cavities:(

I say this... because he has especially vulnerable teeth, I'd say be EXTRA careful of his adult teeth. Keep him away from juices and soda and candy, ETC- except on very special occasions. Have him brush after EVERY meal. You can start this now, so it becomes a habit of his later. Just treat it as a "special need". Just as a mom who had a kid with an allergy... they keep them from those things that they are allergic to.

What I find is a good way to cope with something is to have an action plan on how you will take care of it.

Good Luck!

I had silver from my incisors back (only ones that werent were my 2 fronts tops and bottoms). I have always had bad teeth. They are week, and prone to cavities. Currently I have had 8 root canals, and two bridges. I wasn't teased for having a silver smile (althought this was 23 years ago lol) and I actually thought they were cool (my dad told me because they are "silver" I will get more money when they fall out because they are worth more and I remember telling my friends this too, haha). Don't beat yourself up, its probably mostly genetic. The only reason you should feel guilty is if you didn't do anything about it and his teeth rotted out. You did the right thing by taking him to the dentist. hang in there!

I can totally relate, my 3 year old son has two teeth missing due to decay. He chipped his tooth when he was little over 1 1/2 years old. I took him to my dentist and she said it was chipped but wait until he could sit still in the chair and she'd make them fine. Well, I waited until he was a little over 2, he is very shy and doesn't talk well. Anyway, she told me to take him to a ped. dentist. I did and he told me my little boy needed to be put under and ended up removing two teeth and crowning 6 or so. The front teeth are white and silver on the back teeth.
I do know some little boys thing it's pretty cool to have metal in their mouth. I remember one telling me how cool he was because he had silver teeth... so maybe he'll have no problem.
I feel your pain completely...I just tell myself these are the baby teeth and he'll have big teeth later and I won't let them have cavities. Get them sealed.
Don't let it put too much guilty on you, at least your son didn't have them removed.

Unforntunatly, all kids are made fun of at school, no matter what school the child goes to. I would have a plan in place for when your child is made fun of for any reason. The only suggestion I haven't heard is toothpaste. He might need a pro-enamual toothpaste. And there isn't a need for you to feel guilty...it sounds like you are doing everything you can do. Hang in there.

Kids teeth have nothing to do with whether they drip from cups, bottles, or a gallon jug. Holding the bottle in their mouth all night with milk dripping on the teeth however does. Your child is just a victim of bad genetics like the dentist said. I would have kept looking because most Pediatric Dentists are now using white fillings and caps instead of the silver. Our Pediatric dentist is in practice in a clinic with several other docs and he uses only white material for baby teeth. he understands how cruel kids can be and has never used the silver. Most of the time it is older docs who won't use anything but silver.

Anyway, as you know this is just the start of a life of dental visits and fillings and caps. I have weak enamel and have missing teeth now because my teeth just gave out, they are so bad I can't even get them filled. You need to make sure you are an advocate for your child. Don't let them put more silver in there, find a Pediatric Dentist who only uses white material.

You did the best you could and this is not your fault. It is a genetic thing. If having a drink around all the time was as bad as some moms would make you think then every adult would have tooth rot from excessive pop drinking and too much other stuff in their mouth all the time. Saliva washes/rinses the mouth out all the time.

Good luck with your child's teeth, chances are these teeth will be gone by the time he enters school, or at least 1st grade, most kids start loosing their baby teeth at 4-6 years old.

Was this your son's first trip to the dentist? It seems odd that the pediatrian didn't see any cavaties, but 3 dentists did. My 3y old had 4 cavities on her second visit. I felt awful! My dentist does white and silver fillings, but the insurance only covers silver 100% for all teeth except the front 6. To get white fillings I'd had to pay $50 a tooth!

So we went ahead and got the silver. My hope is since they are back teeth that you can't really see them. Hers are back teeth so it will be a long time before they fall out.

You did the right thing by getting them filled. I would talk to your pediatrician about giving him a daily vitamin to help.

Just think of it this way, now when he gets braces, you'll already be used to the look!

M.

This is such a spin of the genetic wheel. My son (6 years old now) has gone through the same thing (genes and asthma medicine gave him his robot mouth). He has always been so good about brushing himself and letting me brush when he was very small, and now he as a bunch of caps and fillings. His big sis faught brushing when she was a baby and now has to be reminded and threatened to make sure she brushes properly, but she does not have a single cavity! Try to not feel guilty (I know this is hard), but you did not do anything wrong and you followed up with proper medical care. My son is actually proud of his robo teeth and his friends think they are cool and they will fall out before his is a teenager when he may start to feel self concious about them. Feel better! You are an excellent mom!

This happened to me-rocking along thinking I was doing everything right-reading, play, shots, carseat, etc. My DD was 3 when she had to have 8 cavities filled all at once!! They did fall out and now she is 18 and going to college with no adverse effects!! lol
Just keep telling him he has a beautiful smile so your feelings of his image will not effect him!! Make up a story about the hero who had teeth like his and tell him that story every night-build him up before the kids get ahold of him and he will be able to tell them he is special because of his teeth.

My nephew was born 2 and a half months early and weighed only 2 and a half pounds. Because of this, he had some mineral issues with his teeth, resulting in the same thing at about the age of 3. He is now 8 and most of his teeth have fallen out, to be replaced by his healthy adult teeth. If it brings you comfort, he was never picked on. Kids might be curious, as time goes on, but just practice what you want him to say in response.

Unfortunately you can't help what other kids may say or do. Kids can just be downright mean sometimes. Just prepare your son for that before preschool and you should be the last person to judge your son. Don't ever admit that you are hurt by your sons appearance. Our children need us to be the strong ones and encourage self worth. If you are ashamed, he will be also.

You are obviously not a bad parent because he does brush, its probably just genetics or the deficiency like you said. Don't beat yourself up over something that even your dentist said wasn't something you could have prevented. Look on the bright side, when he loses his baby teeth you can sell back the silver and get your money back. No, but seriously, I'm sure your son has a beautiful smile no matter what. A little silver doesn't change the genuine nature behind it. Childrens smiles are beautiful anyhow.

Just look beyond the silver and see the beautiful smile behind it.

dont feel bad I had my daughter with silver front teeth at the age of two and then at 3 we went on vacation to california and she fell off her stroller trying to grab something that had fallen and broke her silver teeth, thus having to have them removed so she wouldn't get any infections according to the pedicatric dentist in that town he was great and now she just finished her pre k year of school going to kinder and she is great the kids were fine they didn't make fun of her or anything and alot of other kids had silver teeth. so all is good.. not to worry.

I know twin 3-year-olds who looked exactly like you described: a mouth full of silver like robots. The good news is that they are beautiful teenagers now. So this too shall pass...