Brushing teeth helps your child avoid cavities, but sometimes, it’s not enough. There are lots of hard-to-reach areas in a child’s mouth that are more cavity-prone. It’s difficult to get the toothbrush between the small grooves and crevices of the back teeth, so they can decay if left alone. Sealants are used to give your child’s teeth extra protection in those areas.

Sealants are plastic resins that go in the deep grooves of a tooth and then harden. Once a tooth gets sealed, the grooves become smoother so plaque is less likely to hide in them. Sealants make brushing more effective and tooth decay less likely.

We normally apply sealants to children’s teeth after their permanent teeth have started to come in and rarely on baby teeth. However, every patient’s needs are different, so a dentist’s recommendations for sealants will vary for every child.

Sealants normally last between three and five years, but it’s possible for adults to still have sealants from when they were younger. If your child’s sealants come off at all, contact us so we can schedule an appointment to re-seal them. Sealants are only effective if they’re fully intact.