Dental Sealants – Why We Recommend Them

In our Mission Viejo dental office, we use dental sealants to help reduce the likelihood of our patients developing cavities. We believe in offering comprehensive preventative care. While most people think of professional teeth cleanings as the only thing that can prevent infections and disease, we can actually take additional steps to help. These include:

Comprehensive Preventative Dental Care

Fluoride treatments

Fluorine is a naturally-occurring mineral that can help to strengthen teeth. Patients can get fluoride in the water they drink (if you are on public water) or through a fluoride treatment at our dental office. We recommend that children and teens have a fluoride treatment once a year. Fluoride treatment is a simple, fast and non-invasive treatment since all we do is apply the fluoride and wait a couple of minutes for it to be absorbed by the teeth. Patients can get fluoride at home by using a special toothpaste, an excellent way to augment our in-office treatment.

Dental sealants

Dental sealants are another way we prevent cavities. It is common for people to have deep ridges on the chewing surfaces of their teeth. These ridges are breeding grounds for bacteria and plaque since it is easy for food to stick between teeth and hard to brush the food away. As a result, many people develop cavities in these areas specifically. We can reduce the likelihood of this happening by applying a dental sealant. This is a plastic-like material that goes on gently and only takes a few minutes per tooth to apply.

The dental sealant hardens right away and creates a barrier that prevents food from touching the actual chewing surface of the tooth. Since the teeth will not be able to trap food particles, the likelihood of developing a cavity is very slim. We find this option to be particularly helpful for children prone to getting cavities. Since decay can cause uncomfortable toothaches and days missed from school, it is far better to prevent them by using a solution such as dental sealants. Since the process is fast and entirely non-invasive, dental sealants are an easy treatment for children of all ages.

When you or your children visit Ballou Dental Arts, we will perform an examination and let you know if we recommend either fluoride or dental sealants. If so, we can typically clean your teeth and then provide you with these treatments on the same dental visit. This way, you do not need to come back to our dental office. The exception is if we have to place dental sealants on most of the teeth and you are on a tight schedule.

In this case, we will be happy to schedule a follow-up appointment. In any case, this is a fast, comfortable, convenient, and affordable way to reduce the risk of you or your children developing cavities. When combined with good oral hygiene and a healthy diet, our preventative care can help you maintain healthy teeth for a lifetime.