April 7, 2017
Thirteen-month-old Max Esteban gets ready for his free fluoride varnish application with a cuddle from his mom Anyi Cano.
Story by Kristin Whitworth; Photo by Sara Blake
We all know tooth decay can be painful and costly. We also know drinking water with fluoride, using fluoride toothpaste and having fluoride applied to the teeth prevents cavities and preserves our oral health.
But many people don’t know that kids as young as 12 months can also get tooth decay.
“Getting an early start using fluoride has life-long benefits,” says Cindi De Graaff, Provincial Oral Health Manager, Alberta Health Services (AHS).
“Tooth decay can appear as soon as your child’s first tooth appears. This is something parents don’t often think about, so we want to remind them of the benefits of fluoride.”
AHS offers free fluoride varnish application to eligible children, including newcomers to Alberta, 12 to 35 months age, to protect their teeth from decay.
Anyi Cano and her 13-month-old son, Max Esteban, moved to Grande Prairie from Colombia last year. As a Spanish-speaking newcomer to the province, Anyi enrolled in the English-language class offered through the family literacy program of the Grande Prairie Council for Lifelong Learning, which helps adults develop skills through literacy activities in their parent-and-child classes.
AHS oral health staff visit this language program twice a year to make new Canadians aware of their fluoride varnish services. As well, they also provide fluoride varnish to children onsite, something Cano learned would be great for her son Max.
“This was the first experience for Max,” she says, “and I was very happy with it.”
Fluoride varnish is safe and effective for preventing tooth decay. Children only need to have a few teeth to start getting fluoride. In all, four applications are given, at a frequency of one every six months.
At the appointment:
Cano says she hopes other families and newcomers will see how important fluoride is for young children and encourages other parents to bring their kids in for the service.
“I think it’s very important to have the fluoride varnish applied to prevent cavities,” she adds. “I also feel it’s very important for their general health.”
The free preschool fluoride varnish program, launched in 2012, is available provincewide through the oral health department of AHS.
“Fluoride is good and safe at any age,” says De Graaff. “Cavities can cause pain and affect a child’s eating, speaking, playing, sleeping and learning — so it’s important we do what we can to prevent them.”
To learn more about AHS oral health services for children, please visit ahs.ca/oralhealth.
