OT: Baby Bottle Mouth...

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

Manna wrote:

What a bad day for me. I'm literally in tears over something so stupid....

My younger son (2) is developing a bad case of baby bottle tooth decay. So I called to try to get an appointment with the only pediatric dentist within an 80 mile radius of where we live.... they won't accept him since he's a Medicaid patient (they only take a limited number, and everyone knows this is b/c Mcaid pays less for their services) - even if I offered to pay the difference in what they'd charge, or pay the whole thing out of pocket (apparently that's illegal).

I'm so upset about it. I already feel like a terrible mama, and now I feel even worse that I can't even get my son decent health care coverage. The system is so screwed up.

Sorry to rant about this here, I just had to let that out somewhere.

Try not to be so hard on yourself. Doctors/dentists are actually getting away from calling it "baby bottle mouth" because they're beginning to realize it's not *caused* by bottles, but by a bacterial infection (strep mutans. If your child has this bacteria present in his/her mouth, then it would be unlikely for him to NOT have tooth decay at some point, in spite of how well you practice dental hygiene.

The best preventative for S. mutans infection is to not share spoons, straws, or anything that would transfer bacteria from your mouth into baby's mouth (because transfer usually comes from the child's primary caregiver). These precautions need to be taken until around age 3-4, at which point the child's mouth is fully colonized and it's very unlikely that S. mutans will colonize.

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great informational post!

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Specializes in NICU.

My friend's son also got "baby bottle mouth". He was totally breast fed, to at least age four. (We don't talk about that any more) Nice to know what causes it! I figured he just spent too much time on the breast, as he was still sleeping with mom.

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Hey Mimi . . :D

Just read an article that breastfeeding, even at night, DOES NOT cause dental caries.

Yee haw . . .I'm still nursing my son and at night.

No dental caries at all.

Don't be so hard on yourself manna.

steph

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Thanks so much for the info, that makes me feel a bit better.

Oh btw Mimi, my son still nurses AND sleeps with me. Thus possibly the source of some of my guilt. :)

Thanks Steph, there's always something for us moms to feel guilty about, I guess! Nobody's perfect, right? :)

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Specializes in School, Camp, Hospice, Critical Care.

My now 17-year-old had substantial dental work before the age of 2. She never touched a bottle; was breastfed until 3-1/2 (and slept with us!). The pediatric dentist wanted me to stop nursing and claimed it was the cause, and I told him to stick to the field he actually knew something about ;-)

Personally, I think genetics has a lot to do with the quality of one's enamel. My mom had lousy teeth, my brother and I have lousy teeth, and my kids had dental problems early, as did my brother's. Interestingly, my brother's and my family have very different lifestyles--we're kinda normal (as in moderation in all things), his family are total health nuts--*very* careful about diet, exercise, nutrition (no added sugar in foods)--yet our kids had exactly the same kinds of problems at exactly the same ages.

Manna, don't beat yourself up about the "bottle mouth" issue--you sound like a darn good mother to me! Here's hoping you'll find the right dentist to care for your little one.

P.S. --my youngest (now 10) nursed til 4-1/2 and still climbs into bed with us some nights! I have awesome kids--life just don't get much better than that!

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

Hey, I'm glad to see more nursing and cosleeping moms! My youngest doesn't nurse at night anymore (we night weaned at 3), but we still cosleep most nights.

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I am not trying to be mean, I have four kids myself, but if you let your children sleep with you, when do you and your husband find time to,,,,you know?? I love the time my hubby and I get to spend together after all the kids are in bed. I also practiced extended breastfeeding, and I am guilty of letting them sleep in the bed at times, but not on a regular basis.

Like I said, I am not critical, just curious.

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Originally posted by jenc73

I am not trying to be mean, I have four kids myself, but if you let your children sleep with you, when do you and your husband find time to,,,,you know?? I love the time my hubby and I get to spend together after all the kids are in bed. I also practiced extended breastfeeding, and I am guilty of letting them sleep in the bed at times, but not on a regular basis.

Like I said, I am not critical, just curious.

LOL! My husband and I are now separated, but before we'd either wait until the kids were sleeping, or go somewhere else. The bedroom isn't the only place in the house to "you know" LOL! :D

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Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

My 2 year old is still nursing as well :) No plan to wean her either.

My oldest co-slept with us till she was 3 then moved to her own bed when her sister was born. My 2 year old sleeps with us sometimes but I think she likes sharing the room with her sister more then me...they love each other :)

And for those who ask where do you have sex with a baby/toddler in the bed? Let me think.....shower, living room, kitchen table, floor...lol yep we have a pretty hot sex life if you ask me! The bed is the most boring place to have sex! LOL :)

And I think its great your friend son nursed till he was 4! People really freak out here in america because they don't realize the life long health benifits of nursing after the age of one. A few countries I have visited (such as Norway ) it is VERY common to see toddles still nursing right out in public!

American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that "babies be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months and that breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months, and thereafter for as long as mutually desired. "

"The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF recommend exclusive breastfeeding from birth for the first 6 months of life and sustained breastfeeding together with adequate complementary foods thereafter for up to 2 years of age or beyond."

And no mother, whether they choose to bottlefed or breastfeed should feel guilty about dental caries! YOU didn't cause it from to many bottles or even sleeping all night with a boob in her/his mouth, its just a nasty bacteria that easily spreads. Actually over in Norway, Sweden and a few other places this has been know for years and ped's tell the parents not to share eating utensils, toothbrushes, etc with their kids because it spread the bacteria that caues dental caries.

Marilyn

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Ditto the above regarding where do you make love . . . .there's lots of places:D

Actually, sometimes after our son falls to sleep, we move him to the crib.

My husband and I love co-sleeping. I got way more sleep than having to get up out of bed, pick the crying kid up, sit in a rocking chair and try to nurse him back to sleep. When he would just start to wake, I'd pop the nipple in and he AND I would be back to sleep in no time.

It isn't for everyone of course. But I'm very happy.

steph

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Specializes in NICU.

Steph,

I'm glad to know something else causes the dental caries problem. Isn't it sad that you can feed your baby coke in a bottle, or breast feed, and still end up dental problems.

Sometime I'll talk to you about my friend and breastfeeding.

mimi

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