Raising Cavity-Free Kids in Bethlehem, PA

A childhood with no fillings in it, and a plan that starts at the first visit.

Raising Cavity-Free Kids is our program at Always About Smiles, our Bethlehem, PA dental office, for children followed from the age of two: regular visits, sealants, fluoride and a home routine we build with you. The goal we work toward is a childhood with no fillings in it.

The idea behind Raising Cavity-Free Kids

In other words, the sometimes unpleasant dental experiences of your youth do not have to be repeated with your children. We emphasize helping parents raise cavity-free children. With improved technology, it may be possible to eliminate tooth decay in children. That's all Raising Cavity-Free Kids is: everything we know about prevention, applied early and kept up.

Working with you, not handing out rules

Parents get the same courtesy our grown-up patients get: we tend not to lecture them about taking better care of their teeth and gums. Instead we work with them to establish an oral health routine that fits into their life style. That means asking what mornings are actually like in your house before suggesting anything, and changing one thing at a time. Nobody is graded.

Growing up with it

From two, it's a look and a polish twice a year, so nothing about the room is ever new. From six, sealants go on the first permanent molars as they arrive, with fluoride at each visit. Through the teens it turns into grinding, sports guards and habits that stick when nobody's watching. Most of the children we've followed this way reach their permanent teeth cavity-free.

What does Raising Cavity-Free Kids actually involve?

Two visits a year from the age of two, sealants on the back teeth as they arrive, fluoride at each cleaning, and a home routine we work out with you rather than hand to you. There's nothing to sign up for and nothing extra to buy. It's simply how we look after children in our office.

Does it work?

Most of the children we've followed from age two reach their permanent teeth cavity-free. That's what I've seen in our office, not a figure out of a study, and I'd rather tell you it that way. It goes best when the visits stay regular, which is the part families have most control over.

How much does Raising Cavity-Free Kids cost in Bethlehem, PA?

There's no separate fee for the program — you're paying for the visits, and those are quoted in writing. Our Patient Loyalty Program brings families substantial savings on all their dental care. We're fee-for-service, we file your claim for you, we're good at it, and we'll push to get you reimbursed. Financing is available.

My older child already has fillings. Is it too late to start?

Not at all, and nothing about the past comes up. We start from the mouth in front of us: what's there, what's arriving, and what would make the next few years easier. Plenty of families come to us partway through childhood, and the program works the same from wherever we pick it up.

What do you actually ask us to do at home?

Brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, and flossing once the back teeth start touching. Proper oral hygiene at home is extremely important and needs to begin at a very young age. We take the time to instruct parents and children on proper brushing and flossing techniques so they can enjoy good oral health for a lifetime.

What about sugar and snacks — how strict do we have to be?

It's how often, more than how much, that decides this. A tooth recovers between meals, and it doesn't get the chance if there's something sweet in hand all afternoon. So we look at the timing rather than banning anything, and juice sipped from a cup through the day is the one I'd raise first.

Raising Cavity-Free Kids in Bethlehem, PA

  • Visits begin at age two, so kids get familiar long before anything needs doing
  • Sealants protect the teeth that are most at risk
  • A routine based on advice that survives a school week
  • Most children we've followed from two reach their permanent teeth cavity-free

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Is the approach any different for a child who is already frightened of the dentist?

    We take longer over it, and the office helps. It was built in 1988 and remodeled in 2001 with the Pride Institute for people who find dentistry hard: a living-room reception, equipment kept out of the line of sight, no waiting in a corridor. We try not to push children so they end up fearful of the dentist's office.

  • Can the whole family come in on the same morning?

    Usually, yes. Ask the front desk and we'll build the appointments around one trip. Families come in from Nazareth for a morning that covers everybody, parents included, and it often helps a nervous child to watch a parent go first and come back unbothered.

  • Does a cavity in a baby tooth matter if the tooth is going to come out anyway?

    It can, depending on which tooth it is and how long it has left. Some baby molars stay until age 12, and an uncomfortable one makes chewing and sleeping harder in the meantime. I'll tell you which ones I'd treat and which I'd watch, and why.

  • Is there anything for a child who won't let anyone near their teeth at home?

    Plenty, and you are not the first to ask. Brushing in front of a mirror, letting them go first and you finishing it, two brushes so there's one to hold… these small changes tend to work better than a battle. Raise it at the visit and we'll try a few things together.

  • Is there anything for the children to do while they wait?

    There's an arcade area, which most children find before their parents have sat down. It's there for the same reason the reception room looks like a living room: a child who arrives happy is a child who sits in the chair happily.