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Everyone knows that consuming too much sugary or acidic foods and drinks can damage tooth enamel. However, not everyone knows that another risk is that antibiotics damage tooth enamel if used inappropriately. Therefore, people should not self-medicate with antibiotics without consulting a doctor.
1. Common antibiotics cause tooth enamel damage
If your child has a bacterial or fungal infection, he or she may develop a fever, loss of appetite, constant fussiness and the pediatrician may prescribe antibiotics. As a result, of the most commonly prescribed children's medicines, antibiotics dominate this list.
Antibiotics can be very effective for conditions such as strep throat, pneumonia, some ear and sinus infections. Among them, Amoxicillin is very often prescribed for babies with ear infections. However, not a few studies have found that antibiotics in general, especially Amoxicillin, can affect tooth enamel. Specifically, children taking Amoxicillin have damaged tooth enamel and are more likely to develop fluorosis, a condition in which teeth are exposed to excess amounts of fluoride. This can cause stains or pitting on the teeth. Some have observed that even when Amoxicillin is used in infancy, high levels of fluoride exposure can still cause developmental problems in permanent teeth into adulthood.
Besides, Tetracycline is another antibiotic that can also adversely affect children's teeth. However, the danger of antibiotic damage to tooth enamel in cases of Tetracycline use may begin when a woman takes the drug while pregnant. Therefore, children under 8 years old and pregnant women should not take Tetracycline, it is best to avoid it absolutely if there are other antibiotics that can be substituted. If Tetracycline is used accidentally during childhood, this antibiotic can cause teeth to become yellow. If the mother takes it while pregnant, the antibiotic will not only damage the enamel of the baby teething baby, but it can even cause the baby's teeth to become permanently discolored. In addition, Tetracycline can also be passed to infants in breast milk and affect the development of bones and teeth of breastfed babies.
For these reasons, both dentists and pediatricians recommend that parents give their children antibiotics judiciously, only when absolutely necessary, and follow the doctor's orders. This not only helps children recover from illness, but also protects the beauty and oral health of children in the long run.
Thuốc kháng sinh làm hỏng men răng nếu sử dụng không thích hợp
2. Other causes affecting oral health
Dry mouth Dry mouth can increase the risk of damaging tooth enamel, leading to tooth decay and gum disease later in life. This is because saliva helps clean food particles and neutralize acids that can erode tooth enamel. Saliva also helps control bacteria in the mouth. Dry mouth occurs when the salivary glands become less active.
Therefore, when a child has a runny or stuffy nose, there are some common medications prescribed that can have a side effect of causing dry mouth. Specifically, decongestants, allergy medications or antihistamines.
To improve dry mouth, there are many remedies such as encouraging children to drink lots of water. For older children, teaching them to chew sugar-free gum or suck on sugar-free hard candy is another way to combat dry mouth and keep saliva flowing.
Sugary drugs cause tooth decay Everyone knows that when sugar stays on teeth, it can cause tooth decay. However, parents often think of candy, cakes and soft drinks rather than drugs.
However, in reality, many children's medicines are sweetened with sugar to mask the unpleasant taste. It is for this reason that a study was conducted on the dangerous association of oral health problems with drugs sweetened with sugar for young children. As a result, children given sugar-coated tablets or syrupy solutions that contain sugar (such as sucrose) have an increased risk of enamel damage from tooth decay.
So if your child has to take sugary cough syrup or some other medicine, even a dropper, make sure he rinses his mouth thoroughly or brushes his teeth after taking the medicine.
Oral thrush Excessively high doses of an antibiotic and prolonged use can cause oral thrush. This is a condition caused by a type of yeast called Candida.
Manifestations of oral thrush are observed when the formation of white spots on the oral mucosa of young children, such as the tongue, cheeks or gums. These spots can join together to cause larger patches. At this time, the child's mouth will feel very painful, the child will stop eating and often cry.
Interestingly, antibiotics work to kill other harmless bacteria in the mouth but will not kill candida. Therefore, to solve this situation, children need to use antifungal drugs.
In short, because of the risks of using antibiotics to damage the enamel of young children, parents always remember to inform the dentist or doctor about the condition of your child's oral health every time it is prescribed. At the same time, the dentist will also guide parents on measures to prevent enamel damage, causing tooth decay or discoloration of children's teeth.
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References: lakespd.com, rotemdentalcare.com, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, healthline.com
