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Your infant’s first teeth will begin to appear around six to 12 months of age. You might wonder how important these primary teeth really are. After all, baby teeth are destined to fall out within a few years and be replaced by a full set of permanent teeth. However, baby teeth have important functions, and proper care can set the stage for excellent oral and overall health.

Promote Better Nutrition

The appearance of your baby’s primary teeth around six to 12 months of age coincides with changes in your infant’s nutritional needs. Beginning at six months, exclusive breastfeeding is no longer nutritionally sufficient; this is the age at which you should introduce solid foods.

At six to eight months, when your baby can start to chew, strained or pureed fruits and vegetables are appropriate. As your little one’s teeth grow in and chewing abilities progress through 12 months of age, you can gradually add cereal, bread, cooked meats, and other adult foods to his or her nutritious diet.

Increase the Life Expectancy of Baby Teeth

Although baby teeth are inevitably going to fall out and be replaced by permanent ones, making baby teeth last serves an important role that can have benefits into the future. Baby teeth serve as placeholders for permanent teeth. If they decay and fall out too soon, permanent teeth are more likely to grow in crooked.

How to Take Care of Baby Teeth

Your baby’s primary teeth are already in his or her mouth at birth; they are just invisible because they have not broken through the gums. Since they are already present, your baby can get cavities if you do not practice proper oral hygiene from the beginning.

• Do not let your baby fall asleep with a bottle in his or her mouth.
• Brush your child’s baby teeth twice a day as soon as they come in.
• Floss your child’s teeth as soon as he or she has two teeth that touch.
• Visit Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry for your baby’s first checkup when the first tooth arrives.

The habit of grinding teeth can be both painful and harmful for your children. If you discover that they are frequently grinding their teeth—a condition called bruxism—here is some helpful information on the problem, and how you can find help to put a halt to it.

How to Know if Your Child is Grinding

Sometimes, identifying a child that grinds teeth is as simple as checking in while he or she is asleep. At other times, you may not be able to readily identify the grinding problem. A few of the most common symptoms associated with bruxism include:

• Frequent teeth grinding or clenching of the jaw (in some cases it may be more subtle; in others it may be loud enough that you can hear it)
• Teeth that are worn down
• Complaints of sensitive teeth
• Pain or tightness in the jaw muscles, or an earache or other jaw pain
• Frequent unexplained headaches

In most cases, if your children are grinding their teeth, they will do it at night. If the teeth grinding is a result of excessive amounts of stress, it may also happen during the daytime. Some of the most common reasons children grind their teeth involve:

• Improper alignment of top and bottom teeth
• As a response to pain, especially for tooth, jaw, or gum pain
• Excessive stress, tension, or anger

Treatment Options for Bruxism

In many cases, children will grow out of the teeth grinding as their permanent teeth develop, replacing poorly aligned or painful baby teeth. If your child grinds his or her teeth more frequently, or you begin to notice significant damage, it may be more serious and need to be addressed by Dr. Maryam Azadpur before it causes more permanent pain or problems.

In some cases, our team at Simsbury Pediatric & Adolescent Dentistry may recommend that your child wears a protective mouthguard to prevent grinding, or work with a therapist or other specialist to develop awareness of the grinding. If the grinding is caused by stress or anxiety, it may be helpful for you to sit down and talk to your child each day about how she is feeling, and why, to help her work through the stress.

Teeth grinding can be a painful, problematic condition for some children. However, a combination of parental vigilance and frequent visits for regular checkups at our Simsbury, CT office can help. If you are concerned that your child may be grinding his or her teeth, and it could cause permanent damage before the child grows out of it, come talk to us about strategies for dealing with bruxism, and ways for you to help your child.

On March 17, everyone has a little Irish in them. St. Patrick’s Day is a joyous celebration of Irish heritage. The holiday originated as a commemoration of Saint Patrick, who brought Christianity to Ireland. The saint arrived in Ireland in 432 and earned the reputation of a champion of Irish Christianity. March 17th, the day of St. Patrick’s death, has been commemorated by the Irish for over 1,000 years. St. Patrick’s Day is still observed as a religious feast day by several Christian denominations, but it is better known in the public imagination as a rich celebration of Irish culture.

St. Patrick’s Day has been an official public holiday in Ireland since 1903. Each year, the Irish celebrate with a several-day festival that includes theater performances, music, fireworks, and festive parades. The celebration is also a public holiday in Northern Ireland, Montserrat, and Newfoundland and Labrador. In other parts of the world with heavy Irish populations, it is an unofficial celebration of Irish heritage. Parts of Great Britain, Canada, Argentina, South Korea, Switzerland, New Zealand, the United States, and Australia commemorate the holiday each year. Typical celebrations in these countries include drinking green beer, wearing green, eating traditional Irish foods, parades, and shamrock decorations.

Many people, Irish and non-Irish alike, take part in the “wearing of the green” on St. Patrick’s Day. In fact, the color originally associated with Saint Patrick was blue. His use of shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity to the Irish made the green clover emblematic of the holiday, leading to the traditional green attire worn by thousands on St. Patrick’s Day. Other little-known facts about St. Patrick’s Day include the following:

• Each year, the United States and Ireland face off in a rugby competition called the “St. Patrick’s Day Test.”
• Montreal celebrates the holiday with an annual parade, which has been held each year since 1824. The Montreal city flag even features a shamrock in its corner, as a nod to its Irish heritage.
• The Guinness World Records named St. Patrick’s Day the “Friendliest Day of the Year.”
• Along with Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day is one of the most widely celebrated saint’s day in the world.

No matter your cultural heritage, St. Patrick’s Day is a great time to let loose and celebrate your inner Irish-ness! Don your greenest attire and exclaim “Erin go Bragh!” (Ireland forever!) to everyone you meet. From Dr. Maryam Azadpur - have a great St. Paddy’s day!

This month we are celebrating our staff for Employee Appreciation Day and our wonderful Dr. Azadpur for National Dentist Day!

We are celebrating our Dental Assistants, Lilly and Melissa, and our Sterilization Technician, Lesa on March 8. Next month, we will celebrate our Hygienists and Administrative Professionals. Each celebration is a party with lunch, gifts, and a sweet treat. It’s important to celebrate all your team members because when employees feel valued and appreciated, they are happier at work. It contributes to a healthy and productive environment. We all like to feel that our employers appreciate us, as is the case here in our office.

Our front desk team Kelly & Susan continually crush it with greeting patients, working the phones, filling open appointments, and generally supporting the whole office. They have each other's back every day. We have a fabulous pair of hygienists, Kay & Alison. Their styles may be different, but their patients love them! Our dental assistants, Lilly & Melissa are awesome! They support Dr. Azadpur and go above and beyond to make our little patients feel safe and comfortable. Lesa, our sterilization tech keeps all the parts moving smoothly in the back and makes sure everything is kept clean and sterile. Our Financial Coordinator, Jill, knows EVERYTHING! Her work may be mostly behind the scenes, but it is felt in every aspect of the business. We would fall apart without her. Our Office Manager, Pat, is the bandleader of us all. She handles so many things and always has time to talk with employees about anything that may be bothering them. She solves so many problems. Her gentle way of getting right to the heart of the matter is inspiring! Shari, our Marketing Director, has the best job of all! She finds creative ways to reach out and find new patients. She loves looking for ways we can support our community – you should see her flyers and social media posts! They are so much fun!

Shoutout to all of our team members we appreciate each one of you!

And of course, we cannot forget Dr. Azadpur, our one and only doctor who will get to celebrate Employee Appreciation Day and Dentist Day.

Dr. Azadpur has been a dentist for nearly 30 years and loves taking the time to get to know each child, build trust and comfort in the dental environment, and guide kids as they mature into great adult dental patients! Her philosophy, which is shared by the whole team, is to provide great dental care, delivered with compassion, in a warm and friendly setting. Dr. Azadpur knew early on that working with children was her calling. She is Board Certified in Pediatric Dentistry as well, which requires special, additional training and education

Outside of the office, Dr. Azadpur can be found at home, spending time with family and friends. She enjoys reading, exercising, and cooking. Her greatest joy is found in nature: she loves plants, flowers, and herbs, and finds a lot of fulfillments in growing and caring for them. Dr. Azadpur and her husband have lived in Simsbury for almost two decades and have raised their family in this wonderful community. They have two adult children.

In terms of office updates, please note that our schedule is fully booked at least 3 months out! Please try not to cancel appointments as it may be a while before we can see you again and delaying treatment may lead to bigger issues later. We do understand that emergencies happen, and we will do our best to accommodate your child, but please be patient and understanding while we work to find room in our very full schedule. We maintain an ASAP list as well. We will be happy to add your child to it and call you if an appointment slot opens up. Also, please verify your insurance coverage prior to coming in. If you have new insurance, let us know as soon as possible, even well before any appointments. There have been lots of changes in insurance coverages and they rarely cover 100% of treatment. Check with your HR department and call your provider to verify coverage. We are unable to call your insurance company on your behalf when you are here in the office. Please bring your insurance card to EVERY visit.

We are also so excited to announce that as of March 1 we offer Online Bill Pay! This new service is available through our Patient Portal. If you need a login link, give us a call at 860-658-7548. If you already have a login, just click the Patient Portal button on the home page of our website.

Happy Spring and we hope to see everyone soon at their next appointments!