“Does tooth decay in baby teeth affect adult teeth?”

Yes, If the baby tooth gets infected, it can damage the permanent tooth.

No they won’t.

If the decay is allowed to get bigger and causes more damage to the baby tooth, then the adult tooth can be affected. A lot of people think it's a waste because the baby tooth will eventually be lost. However they may not happen for several years. The decay will continue to spread and can cause the tooth to abscess. If this happens, the adult tooth that is growing
beneath the baby tooth can become infected. That is why it is extremely important to have cavities in baby teeth filled before it gets to this point.

Decay in his primary teeth doesn't directly affect his permanent teeth. However, untreated tooth decay in his primary teeth can cause space loss which can affect permanent tooth eruption and spacing. Also, decay untreated in a primary tooth could lead to infection which could affect his permanent teeth depending on age.

Hi,

No, decay on baby teeth does not affect permanent teeth. Of course, whatever is causing the decay on your child's teeth should be corrected as the permanent teeth come in.

Cavities in baby teeth does not necessarily mean that your son will have cavities in his permanent teeth, although it should give you a little cause for concern. There are a number of factors that cause tooth decay: heredity, bacteria in the mouth, nutrition, diet, home care, and fluoride to name a few. Some you cannot control, but the rest will definitely either lead to or might prevent cavities in your son's teeth. Reduce sugar intake, encourage and assure good oral hygiene with daily brushing and flossing, and check with your pediatrician regarding fluoride supplements depending.

A cavity in deciduous teeth will not affect the adult dentition. Cavities that caused the baby tooth to be puller and/or missing will affect the future alignment of the adult teeth.

Yes, they very well may. Certain baby teeth are supposed to stay until about 12 years old. If decayed and left untreated, dental infection can grow to the permanent teeth which are located in close proximity to the roots of the baby teeth. Make an appointment with your dentist/pediatric dentist for further consultation and treatment for your son.

Kindly,

Andy Gaertner

A child's baby teeth start to erupt at about six months. It is important that these baby teeth are cared for. As teeth erupt you take a clean wash cloth gently wipe the teeth from the gum line to the top of the teeth. You get your child use to having someone working in his mouth. I always remind parents that at bedtime if your child is using a bottle at night, just plain water should be placed in the bottle. Juice, formula, milk have sugars in them and it lays on the teeth and decays them. By the time a child is around 5 or six years old, the 6-year molars start to come into the mouth. These 6 year old molars are important because these molars will be in the mouth hopefully for the rest of your child's life. The old idea was "the baby teeth will fall out." When you have baby teeth decaying, and a permanent molar erupts into the mouth, this molar can become decayed. Many times, this six-year molar becomes so decayed it needs extraction. Parents should be brushing and then observing the child brushing his teeth until the age of eight. That is what I was taught. The teeth are too important to be taken care of by a young child.

If cavities in baby teeth are taken care of promptly and no infections occur, there should be no effect on the permanent teeth that are developing in the jaw bones. But if these cavities are a result of poor diet or oral hygiene habits, please correct these habits before the permanent teeth are erupted and subject to the same poor habits as the baby teeth.

If you do not brush and floss twice each day you are going to have tooth decay. Talk to your dentist about how you need to improve your oral hygiene. Also ask if you have decay now. If so, have your dentist make a plan to brush and floss regularly and have you dentist check you mouth weekly. Then you will be better.