While improved home dental care is essential to proper dental development in your unborn child, it is equally important to ensure that you are continuing professional dental treatment. Many expectant mothers think dental treatment is unsafe when pregnant. It is absolutely safe to receive dental treatment during pregnancy. More importantly- it is actually recommended. Your dentist will be able to look at your health history and your dental history. Then, they will prescribe suitable dental treatment for you. This will manage your gum health and ensure you avoid pregnancy gingivitis.

Dental Treatment During Pregnancy

Don’t avoid dental treatment during pregnancy.

It is important to understand that your dentist will take care to address any concerns associated with pregnancy. This means that they will pay attention to any medications you are taking to avoid complications and side effects. Dentists will also take all necessary precautions in the event that X-rays are necessary. It is even possible to provide anesthesia that won’t compromise fetal health in the event of dental treatment.

When you find out that you are pregnant, it can be a good idea to contact your dentist as well as your doctor. Research shows that the first few months of pregnancy are the most important for your child’s dental development. During the first trimester preventative dental treatment is provided, though surgeries and procedures requiring anesthesia are often not performed until the second trimester. By the third trimester of pregnancy, it is often difficult for expectant mothers to sit in the chair for a prolonged period of time, and stress presents a higher risk of complications, but these are things that your dentist will always keep in mind when determining the best course of dental treatment.

Women who have periodontal disease are actually some seven times more likely to have a preterm or low birth weight baby. Unfortunately, periodontal infection can often go for long periods of time without the development of symptoms, which means that proper regular preventative dental treatment is absolutely necessary. This is especially true for women who have gestational or traditional diabetes, both of which make the development of periodontal disease much more likely.

Don’t compromise the health of your baby and yourself simply by avoiding dental treatment. Book in a consultation today and allow us to put your mind at ease.

For more information from the Australian Dental Association regarding pregnancy and dental treatment, follow this link: https://www.ada.org.au/Your-Dental-Health/Children-0-11/Pregnancy