Routine oral habits like brushing and flossing are essential to enhance your overall dental health. However, these may not always help you or your child if you are prone to caries. Dental sealants help overcome these issues and aid in preventing dental decay. These are thin, protective films or coating applied on the chewing surfaces of your premolars and molars that consist of deep grooves.
dentist in Downtown Chicago strives towards providing safe, easy, and affordable sealant application that helps prevent dental decay in caries-prone patients.
What are dental sealants?
Sealants are defined as thin, liquid solutions or coating painted onto the chewing surfaces of your premolars and molars. Once applied, these films are cured and hardened to shield and protect your teeth from harmful cavity-causing bacteria.
Sealants are made up of different materials such as:
- Resins (plant or synthetic)
- Glass ionomers (a combination of glass powder and water-soluble acid)
Who needs dental sealants?
Your premolars and molars are back teeth that help you grind and chew your food. These teeth consist of deep grooves where food may get stuck. Regular brushing and flossing cannot reach the deep grooves which makes way for bacterial growth. This leads to dental decay. Sealants coat these areas so that bacteria cannot reach the grooves.
Anyone prone to caries can get dental sealants applied. However, children and teenagers are good candidates for sealants.
- Children and teenagers: Should get sealants as soon as they get permanent teeth and continue during the cavity-prone years (ages 6 to 14)
- Babies and infants: Sealants are also useful if babies have deep grooves in their primary teeth.
- Adults: Adults prone to caries also benefit from sealants when they have deep grooves in their permanent teeth.
Are dental sealants safe?
Dental sealants are safe and effective to reduce your child’s risk of cavities. Children without sealants are three times more prone to decay.
Sealants are less costlier than other invasive dental procedures, thereby reducing the need for such treatments in the future.
How are dental sealants applied?
Sealants are easily applied by your dentist.
- The teeth to be sealed are cleaned and cotton pads are placed around to keep the area dry.
- A special solution is applied on the teeth’ surface so that the sealant bonds with the teeth’ enamel.
- The teeth are rinsed and air-dried.
- A sealant solution is applied to the deep grooves and depressions.
- The material may harden itself or require a special curing light.
Takeaway
Dental sealants are excellent products that help prevent caries in children, teenagers, and adults since it blocks the invasion of bacteria into the deep grooves. This helps avoid any extensive dental procedures in the future. Thus sealants are worth a try!
