How to Distinguish Between Milk Teeth and Permanent Teeth

How do I know the difference between baby and permanent teeth? It can be confusing for many parents who do not know the difference between their child’s baby and permanent teeth. To get rid of this confusion, the following article will shed light on both by highlighting the most important problems they face and how to preserve them.

How to know the difference between baby and permanent teeth

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Therefore, it is important for everyone to know the difference between baby and permanent teeth, as permanent teeth appear at a specific age, while baby teeth are the first teeth that appear in a child’s mouth after birth, and both types are important according to the person’s age or the period the child is going through.

Some people think that baby teeth are useless since they fall out and are replaced by permanent teeth, but this information is wrong because each type of teeth has its own benefit and it is important to take proper care of them.

The clear differences between baby and permanent teeth are in the following elements:

• Tooth enamel: This is the outer layer that coats the tooth surface and protects it, it is usually thinner in baby teeth.
• Tooth color: In most people, baby teeth are whiter than permanent teeth, and this may be due to the thin enamel layer on baby teeth.
• Tooth size: Baby teeth are usually smaller in size than their permanent counterparts.
• Tooth shape: Permanent front teeth are characterized by having protrusions that make them prone to wear over time.
• Tooth roots: Baby teeth have slender, weak roots designed to fall out and be replaced.

Information about tooth structure

Before talking about the most important differences between baby and permanent teeth, it is important to learn about the basic tooth structure of both types. All teeth contain a specific pulp located in the tooth root, which nourishes and supplies the tooth with all the nutrients it needs to renew itself and stay strong.

What are baby and permanent teeth?

Baby teeth: These are the teeth that begin to form from the first month of fetal development and continue to the last months. This starts when the fetus is in the womb and continues after birth until the teeth penetrate the gums and appear clearly when the child is six months old.

Permanent teeth: These are the teeth that replace all the baby teeth when they fall out. They start to appear when the child turns six years old and emerge gradually until the eruption of all teeth is complete. The most notable feature is that they are stronger than baby teeth and function better.

Symptoms of baby teeth eruption

The eruption of baby teeth is accompanied by severe pain suffered by the infant, and this period is known as the teething phase. The most prominent symptoms in the child during this time are continuous, severe crying and the child’s desire to bite things, increased salivation, the child putting their finger in their mouth, irregular sleep and restlessness. The child bites the nipple while breastfeeding, which causes severe pain to the mother.

This condition can be alleviated by using a clean piece of gauze wrapped around the mother’s finger and gently massaging the child’s gums, or placing a cold spoon on the child’s gums to reduce swelling and relieve pain.

The importance of baby teeth

Contrary to what many people believe that baby teeth are useless since they fall out and are replaced with permanent teeth, they play a major role in the life of the infant, represented in the following points:

• Baby teeth help protect the chewing function in children.
• Thanks to these teeth, the normal space between the jaws is maintained.
• These teeth also help maintain the normal space between permanent teeth.
• Undoubtedly, baby teeth contribute to guiding the eruption of permanent teeth to their natural path.

The most common problems with baby teeth

There are some problems that baby teeth are susceptible to, which make them more prone to falling out prematurely, including:

• Tooth decay: Tooth decay is one of the most common problems affecting baby teeth in many children. It usually results from the interaction of certain types of bacteria with sugar in food, producing acids that erode the enamel layer and cause decay. If you want to learn more about decay and its impact on teeth, we recommend reading this article.
• Abscess: An abscess is a purulent collection in a sac resulting from a bacterial infection, leading to inflammation in the tooth root. This causes the child to experience constant, severe pain that may spread to the jawbone. It is accompanied by fever and noticeable swelling of the face.
• Thumb sucking: You may have noticed this common habit in most children, sucking their thumb. However, its continuation even after permanent teeth erupt may affect the proper growth of teeth in the mouth and the shape of the palate.

Which teeth do not change in children?

Permanent teeth do not change, starting to emerge around age 6, with a total of 32 teeth. Baby teeth are completely replaced by permanent teeth that do not get replaced. By the time the child turns thirteen, all permanent teeth would have formed except for the wisdom teeth that erupt between ages 20-25.

When do baby teeth fall out?

What happens with the vast majority of children is that baby teeth fall out by around age six to be replaced by permanent teeth that do not get replaced. It may vary slightly among some children, extending by one more year up to age seven.

When do permanent teeth emerge after baby teeth are removed?

Normally, permanent teeth make their way to emerge within six months at most after extracting baby teeth for the permanent ones to take their place. But if the mother notices that the permanent teeth have taken more than six months to appear, then it is important to consult a specialist and seek their advice, because there are specific reasons that can actually lead to delayed permanent tooth eruption that need to be treated and controlled.

When does permanent tooth growth stop?

We cannot specify a certain age for permanent tooth growth to stop. The last permanent teeth to erupt are the wisdom teeth that show up between ages 21-25, varying from one person to another.

Being exposed to certain diseases may delay permanent tooth growth. It is known that permanent teeth start to emerge around age 6 and are generally complete by the time the child turns 12, with only the wisdom teeth remaining.

Baby teeth and ways to care for them

Baby teeth start forming since the child was a fetus in their mother’s womb and begin to emerge when they are 6-7 months old. The teeth in the lower jaw are the first to appear, followed by the front teeth in the upper jaw.

The rest of the teeth then appear gradually until all teeth in both jaws are complete. After that, the rear molars in the lower mouth emerge, followed by the upper ones, with two molars on each side. The wisdom teeth do not erupt at this age stage.

These baby teeth remain until the child turns six years old, so it is necessary to take care of them and protect them from decay or any other problems through the following:

• The mother should make sure to wash her child’s teeth from the beginning of their emergence using a damp piece of gauze to wipe them until the child grows up and can rely on himself. At that point, use appropriate toothpaste and a soft toothbrush suitable for him.
• It is important that the child does not overindulge in sugars, starches, and sweets that cling to the teeth and harm them.
• Taking the child to the dentist regularly and following up to ensure their condition is good and there are no problems.

How to care for permanent teeth

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Here are some ways to help protect your teeth and make them function properly without any pain:

• It is important to brush your teeth daily after meals and before bed, and to floss at least once a day to remove food debris that accumulates between teeth and causes problems later.
• Be sure to use a suitable mouthwash to kill bacteria in the mouth.
• Reduce consumption of caffeinated drinks like tea and coffee, avoid smoking and drinking alcohol.
• Minimize intake of starches, sugars and sweets because of their harmful effect on dental and overall oral health.
• Visit the dentist regularly, follow-up and undergo periodic dental exams to ensure dental health is good.