Your Child’s First Dental Visit and Baby Teeth

Written by Dr. Nick Jadidi, DDS — Last updated November 13, 2026 · 7-minute read

This article is general information for our patients, not a diagnosis. If something in your mouth hurts, changes, or worries you, have it examined.

New parents ask me the same questions: when the first tooth shows up, whether teething causes fever, how much toothpaste to use and when to come in. The answers below belong to our Child Patient Information library.

A single sign rarely settles anything in a small child. I read the whole picture: your child’s history, what I see in the mouth, how things track against the usual pattern, and sometimes an X-ray. Use this to know what’s normal and when to call, not to reach an answer at home.

When should my child first see a dentist?

Within six months of the first tooth appearing, or by the first birthday, whichever comes first. That’s the Canadian Dental Association’s position, and we follow it.

It feels early, and that’s the point. An early visit heads off problems and lets your child get used to the chair before anything needs doing. We call that a “dental home”: a practice your child knows from the first tooth, not somewhere you only go when something hurts. Children who start early tend to be calmer patients later.

Why bother — aren’t baby teeth just going to fall out?

“They’ll fall out anyway” is the most common reason decay in baby teeth gets ignored. Those 20 baby teeth (the primary teeth) hold space for the adult teeth and guide them into position, shape the jaw, and matter for chewing and speech. They can decay, hurt and become infected just like adult teeth. A neglected cavity can turn into a pocket of infection (an abscess), and a serious infection can affect the adult tooth forming right underneath.

When do baby teeth come in, and in what order?

Most babies get a first tooth between 6 and 10 months, usually a lower front one, and all 20 are usually in by two-and-a-half to three years. The dates vary a lot.

A few months either side of these ages is normal. I pay more attention to the order than the timing: teeth tend to arrive in a predictable pattern, in matching left and right pairs. A tooth that’s very late and out of sequence is worth a look, weighed alongside the exam.

When do the adult teeth start coming through?

The first adult teeth usually arrive around age six, the lower front teeth and the first molars right at the back, and the rest follow into the teens. Baby teeth come out gradually over several years.

The first adult molars are the ones parents miss: they come in behind the last baby molars at about six, so no baby tooth falls out to announce them. They’re a prime spot for a thin protective coating painted into the grooves (a sealant), ideally soon after the tooth comes through.

Wobbly baby teeth at this stage are normal and can usually be left to come out on their own.

Is teething making my baby sick?

Teething can cause sore gums, drooling, an urge to chew, and a few cranky days. It does not cause a high fever, vomiting, diarrhea or a truly unwell baby. If your baby is properly unwell, see your physician: blaming teething can delay the care a child needs.

For comfort, offer a clean finger or a cool (not frozen) teething ring to chew. Skip teething gels with benzocaine or similar numbing ingredients, which Health Canada has warned against for babies and young children, and amber teething necklaces, which carry a choking and strangulation risk.

What actually happens at the first visit?

The first visit is short and gentle, usually 20 to 30 minutes. We count and check the teeth, look for early signs of decay, give a soft clean, and usually paint on a fluoride varnish, a quick coat that helps strengthen the hard outer layer of the teeth (the enamel). Toddlers often have a “knee-to-knee” exam: you and I sit facing each other and your child lies back into my lap, still able to see you and hold your hands. We reapply the varnish at check-ups, typically every six months and as often as every three months for children at higher risk of decay, and go through brushing and feeding with you.

We go slow, let an anxious child watch first and join in when ready, and never force or shame. More on our approach to children’s cleanings, fillings and check-ups.

How much toothpaste should my child use, and when do we start?

Start fluoride toothpaste the moment the first tooth appears, and brush twice a day. Fluoride toothpaste is what makes brushing protective, but the amount matters: young children swallow rather than spit, and too much swallowed fluoride over the years can leave faint marks on the developing adult teeth.

Brush the gum line and the chewing surfaces, have your child spit rather than rinse, and keep the tube out of reach. Children lack the hand control to clean well until around age seven, so your help does the real work.

Can bottles and sippy cups cause cavities?

Bottles and sippy cups can cause early childhood decay (early childhood caries), decay in the baby teeth of a child under six, and it is very preventable. It shows up first on the upper front teeth, because the tongue and saliva partly shield the lower ones. The cause is frequent, prolonged contact with sugary liquid: a bottle of milk, formula or juice sipped through the night, or a sippy cup of juice nursed all day. Each sip restarts an acid attack, and a sleeping mouth makes less protective saliva, so night feeds are hardest on the teeth.

The fixes:

• Nothing but water in the bedtime bottle.
• Move toward a regular open cup, or a lidded cup without a valve so liquid flows freely rather than being sucked, from around the first birthday.
• Keep juice and sweet drinks to mealtimes, in a cup, and offer water between.
• Avoid sharing spoons or “cleaning” a soother in your own mouth. The bacteria that cause decay can pass from your mouth to your baby’s.

More on how cavities form and how we treat them.

Should I worry about thumb sucking?

Thumb and soother sucking is a normal way young children self-soothe, and most give it up on their own with no lasting harm. I watch for a strong habit past about age four, as the adult front teeth get ready to arrive around six. Sucking then can push the upper front teeth forward, leave a gap where the upper and lower front teeth no longer meet (an open bite), and narrow the upper jaw. Stop in time and the bite often improves as the child grows.

Help your child stop gently, with praise for dry-thumb days rather than telling-off. If the habit is stubborn as the adult teeth arrive, mention it at a check-up; a small device made for their mouth sometimes helps. Whether the bite has changed takes an exam to judge, and I cover the options in how braces and orthodontics work for children.

What if a baby tooth comes out too early?

Each baby tooth holds a parking spot for the adult tooth beneath it, which is why we try to save baby teeth rather than pull them. Lose a back baby tooth years early and the neighbours tend to tip into the gap, so the adult tooth can come in crowded or get stuck under the gum. Toddlers fall, and a knocked-out or badly damaged baby tooth is a common cause: here’s what to do when a toddler knocks or chips a tooth.

A space maintainer, a small device (often a band on one tooth with a wire loop resting against the next), can hold the gap until the adult tooth is ready. Not every early loss needs one. It depends on which tooth was lost, your child’s age and how soon the adult tooth is due, judged after a proper look and often an X-ray, never from the gap alone.

Ready to bring your little one in?

If your child has a first tooth or is nearing a first birthday, it’s time to book. If it’s been a while, there’s no judgement here. Call 705-721-9229 or book an appointment online, and we’ll take it from there.