Dental health in early childhood is one of the child's growth and development that needs attention. Over the past decade, the sick paradigm focused on healing and rehabilitative has shifted to the healthy paradigm of prioritizing prevention and promotion. It is therefore important to realize that prevention of dental disease plays an important role in public health care as a whole.

The success of preventative dental care is determined as early as is used. The best time is from the beginning of infancy, during the first year of a child's life. The main concern in dental health is damage to children's teeth. Early childhood caries under 6 years is a multi-factorial childhood disease and is determined by socio-cultural and socioeconomic.

Although children's teeth are teeth that can later be replaced with new teeth, but maintaining health from an early age is a form of habituation for children to adulthood. As long as the child is under the authority of the responsibility and attention of the parents, it means that the child is still dependent on the parents in maintaining and caring for the health of their teeth.

Behaviour that is formed in children in maintaining healthy teeth and mouth is usually shown by regular brushing. But the obstacle is, this is often not directly proportional to the diet that he lives on a daily basis. Early childhood is very fond of sweet foods and drinks. Especially if this is not balanced with good dental care.

How can dental caries occur?

Dental caries formed due to food debris that stick and are not cleaned optimally later by bacteria in the oral cavity, the leftovers are digested and produce acids. This acid will dissolve the tooth surface. Starting from the hardest enamel coating as the main protector. If this protector has collapsed and without treatment, the caries process in the underlying layers will occur even faster.

What is the impact on the child?

The problem of dental caries in early childhood causes a fairly serious impact which is the teeth become porous, cavity and even broken so that makes the child have difficulty chewing perfectly to interfere with digestion.

Dental caries will cause pain in the teeth so that it will interfere with the absorption of food and affect the growth of children to the loss of play time of children due to toothache.

The impact caused by dental caries experienced by children will hamper children's development so that it will reduce the level of intelligence of children, which in the long run will have an impact on the quality of life of the community.

A child's teeth are a growth guide for replacement adult teeth. Damage to the child's teeth will cause the growth guide is lost. A child's tooth that is damaged or must be removed too early (in this case extraction becomes the last option when the tooth has become a source of infection) will cause the replacement teeth to grow in the wrong place. This condition will affect the teeth that will grow afterwards. The end result is, teeth will fall apart when mature.

In general, children or adolescents with poor dental positions will have an impact on self-confidence to the risk of abuse. Not a few of the world of work that includes dental health requirements in the selection acceptance. So indirectly, tooth decay in children will have an impact on one's career as an adult.

Seeing the impact is quite serious, preventive and promotive efforts must be sought from the family level. Parental insight is absolutely necessary, considering that this will affect the child's long-term impact.

Source:

1. Naidu, R., Nunn, J., & Forde, M. (2012). Oral healthcare of preschool children in Trinidad:  a qualitative studyof parents and caregivers. BMC Oral Health, 12(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6831- 12 - 27

2. Widayati, N.  (2014). Factors associated with dental caries in children aged 4-6 years old.  Jurnal Berkala Epidemiologi, 2(2), 196. https://doi.org/10.20473/jbe.V2I22014.196-205

3. Fatimatuzzahro, N., Prasetya, R.  C., & Amilia, W. (2016). Gambaran Perilaku  Kesehatan Gigi Anak Sekolah Dasar di Desa  Bangalsari Kabupaten Bantaeng. Jurnal IKESMA, 12(2), 85.