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Cavities Research Paper

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If you have had frequent cavities for most of your life, then your biggest fear may be that bad oral health is in your genes and your child will live a life filled with cavities, too. While no studies have found that children can truly inherit cavities, there are ways that cavity-prone parents can pass on their bad oral health to their children. However, the great news is that by taking the right steps now, you can prevent this from happening. Here are two important tips for keeping cavities to yourself and not letting your oral health affect your child's.

Know How Cavity Bacteria is Passed So You Can Stop the Cycle

If your mother had frequent cavities as well as you, then it can be easy to suspect you just have genetically bad teeth. Parents can pass on their cavity-causing oral bacteria to their children, but it is not their DNA that causes it. Most babies are born with a healthy oral microbiome that helps keep cavities at bay. However, a parent can pass cavity-causing bacteria and alter the bacterial makeup of a child's saliva for life just through wet kisses and the sharing of eating utensils. …show more content…

Also, resist the urge to take a bite of your child's food mid-feeding to soothe those hunger pangs and then use the same spoon to begin feeding your child again. Instead, just grab a fresh spoon from your kitchen, take your bite, and then don't stick the spoon back into the bowl once it has your saliva on

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