National Children's Dental Health Month

National Children's Dental Health Month is an annual observance in February to raise awareness about the importance of oral health for children. It started as a one-day event in 1941 and has grown into a month-long celebration encouraging good habits and regular dental visits for a lifetime of healthy teeth and gums. The focus has also expanded to include the role of parents in establishing good oral health habits. Dental care is still the most unmet health need for children.

In this episode, we will delve into the importance of oral health and its impact on our overall health. Our health starts with breathing. Our lives begin and end with a breath. You can’t keep children from breathing through their mouths. But you can help your child so they don’t make mouth breathing a harmful habit.  

Key Takeaways:

-Tooth decay is the most preventable chronic infectious disease among children, affecting about half of children by the time they enter school.

-Mouth breathing is a hidden epidemic with 50% of children breathing through their mouths.

-Chronic mouth breathing is connected to myofunctional disorders and can impact jaw and face development and contribute to bedwetting, picky eating, chewing, swallowing, speech, sleep and behavior issues.

-Parents are not usually taught to identify mouth breathing as a root cause of other issues and symptoms are often treated individually.

-Babies are born nasal breathers and the nose warms, filters and humidifies the air we breathe and gives us nitric oxide and CO2 exchange.