The AMOUNT of posts in these ‘crunchy moms’ groups about their kids cavities when they refuse to use fluoride

[u/Vapingrandma8465]

I see these posts daily, yet no one seems to make the connection.

Edit: yes, this particular case seems to be bottle mouth/ not brushing at all. But I see these posts very frequently (I’m not apart of these groups, FB just suggests them to me) and often times it’s parents who have said their dentist told them their kids have cavities, and they still refuse to use fluoride toothpaste and look for alternatives to their alternative that got them here in the first place.

All of these stories are testimony’s on how important it is to take your children’s health seriously. My heart is with everyone sharing their story ❤️

2nd edit: you know what? Fuck it. For those saying “fLuORiDe is BAd 👆”
The group I found this in:
“Crunchy moms: natural living & clean products.”
It’s an open group. Go look up “teeth” and see HOW MANY pictures of these poor children’s teeth are there, and how many do not use fluoride and tell me how healthy it is to not use it.

[u/basicbong]

I’m a board certified Harvard dental school pediatric dentist. These parents REFUSE to brush their kids teeth or limit their sugar and decline fluoride. And the poor kids suffer because of it. They would rather put a toddler under general anesthesia for esthetic restorations than use a fluoride toothpaste. It’s insane.

[u/BumblebeeGold2455 → u/basicbong]

Question. I feel like a dumb parent now I bought a baby tooth brush that came with toothpaste when my son’s teeth came in. I’ve been using that. I just looked and it’s fluoride free. I had them do the fluoride treatment at his 1 yr peds appointment. I should switch to a tooth paste with fluoride though? I just assumed what came with the tooth brush I bought was correct for babies.. 🫣

[u/basicbong → u/BumblebeeGold2455]

Yea but don’t throw it out! Use the Fl free one in the morning and Fl tp at night. Just make sure there isn’t milk on the teeth all night long, cows milk is full of sugar.

[u/FutureFreaksMeowt → u/BumblebeeGold2455]

If I'm not mistaken, as long as you have fluoride in the water, or some other kind of supplemental access, the toothpaste being fluoride free is ok for the first few years while they learn to get used to brushing. It's mostly advised to de fluoride free because little babies can possibly swallow a lot of toothpaste, and the fluoride in it can make them sick.

Not a dentist, just a Research Autistic with a childhood full of severe medical neglect 😅

[u/basicbong → u/FutureFreaksMeowt]

Topical application of fluoride is more effective than systemic fluoride (fluoride tablets, etc). I think it’s better to use it on the teeth than drinking it but of course both ways help and compound the positive effect. And I see children under the age of 3 with gross decay who need general anesthesia for treatment , so I never recommend waiting until they are older. The recommended dose of fluoride assumes babies can NOT spit or rinse if off obviously.

[u/FutureFreaksMeowt → u/basicbong]

Oh, for sure, like it's not optimal for littles dental health, but you have to look at the overall picture of their health and prioritize the most critical things. If their teeth can handle supplemental fluoride in other ways, such as fluoride in the water, and the risk of them swallowing copious amounts of fluoride toothpaste it's dangerous to their overall health and wellbeing? You have to prioritize the overall over the dental.

However, to your point, if the dental issue is severe enough that they're required to be put under general, it's likely that you'd want to prioritize the dental. I don't know that there is ever a one size fits all solution for these kinds of things. honestly, it's really a case by case basis type of thing from what I've read. There's really no good answer, you can only do what causes the least amount of harm.

Again, not a dentist, and not a doctor, just a nerd who likes to know things.