How often do your dc go to the dentist?

[Jackie in NE]

Every 4 mos.?

Every 6 mos.?

Once/yr.?

Never?

 

I have 4 dear children, and not one of them has ever had a cavity or a dental issue. (Orthodontia.... different story). I'm getting tired of paying hundreds of dollars to have the dentist say "Everything looks great!" :glare: I would like to just quit going, and only have them see a dentist when there's a problem.... or maybe every couple of years, or something. Is that irresponsible?? :001_huh:

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

We go every 6 months, but only because we have insurance and don't have to pay out of pocket. When I was single and didn't have insurance, I went to the dentist every 6 years! I never had any dental problems, though.

[TammyinTN]

Since we live overseas the military will only pay for 1 dental cleaning a year. Ortho is a visit each month.

[delaney]

Every 6 months b/c it is covered by dental. Ortho not covered at all but all visits are included in the original price.

[Chris in VA]

We have insurance that covers check ups every 6 months (the recommended amt of time between visits).

 

Yes, I think it's irresponsible to not go (and I've been there, too--). You don't go just when you have a problem. If you go regularly, you can catch a problem before it gets noticeable, preventing a much bigger problem.

 

I know it's expensive. We have poor coverage for the "big problem" things. But had we gone while the problems were little, we would have been ok.

 

You can get dental coverage that handles the check-ups pretty cheaply.

[MissKNG]

My big girl goes every 6 months. My small girl doesn't go yet.

[WishboneDawn]

We all go every 6 mos. UHC here pays for one cleaning visit a year plus fillings and until they're ten and then my husband's health insurance through work kicks in and pays for the other visit and stuff past ten. I'm not sure how often we'd go if cost were a factor.

[GoVanGogh]

We don't have dental insurance, but go every six months. We think preventative care and regular cleanings are very important.

[bzymom]

Every 6 months. At the very least, their teeth are cleaned, they get flouride, and when a younger one needs a sealant, they get that done.

[Wabi Sabi]

Twice a year. A cleaning and an exam that could catch any potential problems early is much better than waiting until a more painful and costly problem arises, IMO. Yes, providing that you can afford it, I do think it is irresponsible to neglect regular preventive dental care.

[cathmom]

In your situation I would go once a year. But I would explain to the children why we are only going once a year! When I was a child, my next older sister and I never had ANYTHING wrong with our teeth, and my mom only took us once a year. I always heard at school and other places that you should go every six months and (although it sounds ridiculous now!) I concluded that since my mom didn't take me every six months, she didn't love me, when really I can see now that taking a child to the dentist who never has anything wrong with her teeth that often is just money down the drain LOL.

[StephanieZ]

My dc go q6 mos. I could imagine going just yearly if my dc had a long history of dental perfection and money was an issue. (We invest in dental insurance, so we don't pay directly for regular checkups, which is why it's not an issue for me.)

 

I wouldn't go less than annually. If there is a dental school near you, that can be a great deal. We're (very happily) using our local dental school for orthodontia, which is saving us about 30% ($3500 instead of $5100). I think they might even have a sliding scale for primary dental care, but I haven't looked into that, as we love our regular dentist.

[Lolly]

I have two who go every 6 mths and two who go once a year. The more frequent two often have cavities. They brush but have more porous enamel or something. The two who go once a year never have a cavity. One of my once a years has even been to the dentist and have them not clean her teeth because they were so clean. Stuff just doesn't stick to them.:confused: I think they charged me for a cleaning though.:glare:

[Veritaserum]

They go every six months for professional cleanings and check-ups. I wouldn't feel comfortable skipping those visits even if a kid never got a cavity.

[The Girls' Mom]

My kids go every 6 months. If we didn't have dental, it would be once a year. For myself...it's once in a blue moon :lol: But I have pretty good teeth and take good care of them.

[antsam]

We don't have dental insurance, but go every six months. We think preventative care and regular cleanings are very important.

 

:iagree:

 

Jodie

[ChristusG]

Every 6 months. We have dental insurance.

[Desert Rat]

We went without insurance for almost 2 years during my dh's layoff. We did keep the medical but felt we couldn't afford both. Now, we have dental again. I took the boys, fearing the worst. Ds8 had no new cavities, just a few that needed to be replaced because the amalgam had cracked. Ds11 had 2 new cavities. Both required sealants. Overall, not terrible. Now, my mouth....... We'll worry about that one after the boys are done getting their teeth taken care of. I'm not looking forward to it.

[Quiver0f10]

Every 6 months.

[regentrude]

Every 6 months. We have insurance.

If we did not have insurance, I would go once a year (as it was common when I was a child).

[kwickimom]

Every other year. We dont have insurance and we use organic toothpaste and floss regularly. No one has had a cavity as of yet and I feel that is all they need .

[NanceXToo]

Every six months. I think you could get away with yearly if they've never had any problems.

[happypamama]

Every 6 months, but our insurance covers a basic checkup/cleaning/x-rays in full. If it didn't, I'd probably weigh pros and cons. One of my children is prone to plaque buildup pretty badly, despite good brushing habits, so that child really needs to be seen twice a year; my other child is not prone to plaque buildup (the dentist raves about how nice that child's teeth look), so once a year would probably be enough. And the 2yo isn't quite old enough for a cleaning yet, but I schedule him along with the older kids, and he gets a checkup/pleasant introduction to the dentist.

 

My children also get eye exams once a year, but if one of them showed any signs of troubles, I'd be comfortable with more frequent exams.

[tiredmommyof8]

Our kids go every 6 months for routine cleaning because it is covered by insurance. If they need any kind of dental work in between then of course we go more often.

[QueenCat]

Every 6 months. Every 3 months while in braces. Both of my children have "my teeth". Even though I floss, brush and rinse regularly, as do they, we get cavities easily.

[MaMa2005]

We don't have dental insurance, but go every six months. We think preventative care and regular cleanings are very important.

 

:iagree: No insurance here either (except for DH), but I want to be proactive rather than reactive. Every six months - like clockwork. We are fortunate because our dentist gives a 20% for non-insurance patients. Really helps the out of pocket.

[Jennifer in MI]

Growing up, we didn't have dental. We went every year. X-rays every other year.

 

Now? We have insurance. We all go every six months.

[sparrow]

We don't have dental insurance, but go every six months. We think preventative care and regular cleanings are very important.

 

This is us, too. We also have 1.5 kids in orthodontics :D. My daughter hasn't started treatment, but has had teeth pulled to make room.

 

It is expensive, but since we've been on the every 6 month cycle, none of us have had any dental problems.

[Daisy]

Every 6mths but we have insurance. If we didn't, I would aim for once a year, unless my children tended to have problems (they don't).

[Acorn]

every 6 months

[RoughCollie]

Every 6 months.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Any child with medicaid over the age of 6 months goes every 6 months so all of mine (even the 7month old) have been within the last 6mo and will go as soon as it will be 6 months. I think the next to go is Princess (age 5) who will be due in October.

 

Now for the older ones of us? Hubby never goes. The kids and I were due in July or August. I'm not happy with our last dentist OR the one we took the littles to though so....We actually mentioned this just this morning. I *need* to find a dentist. And I like the kids to go regularly so they don't end up with big issues.

 

I think the reason to keep going to the dentist, at least yearly would be so nothing DOES go wrong. Good teeth now is great, but they won't stay that way without cleanings and you won't know until it's a bit late if you don't get it checked.

[~Tara~]

Every 6 months as covered by insurance.

 

I grew up in a house where check ups weren't routine. Only going when a problem was noticed, and as was already mentioned, by that time, it's big. If gotten to sooner it would have been better. But, I wasn't taken in until problems were quite noticeable.

 

As a result, I have had a lot of dental work done.

 

I'm not doing that to my kids. They may have the genes for less than great teeth, but I am not going to make that worse by not having them in regularly. I praise the Lord for the money spent that allows me to hear "all good" as my kids leave the dentist.

 

I was rather anxious here recently as hubs job and insurance changed and it didn't cover dental. I was NOT letting dental go.

 

Anywho, all that to say...my kids go every 6 months for cleanings/check-ups, per insurance allowance. (preventative is free)

[Princess Peach]

Every 6 months. We are fortunate to have great insurance that pays everything.

[Hwin]

every 6 mos or sooner if he is in pain. He gets cavities pretty easily :(

[AngieW in Texas]

Every 6 months because it is covered by dental insurance. Without insurance, the older two would go just 1x/year, but the youngest would still go every 6 months. The youngest is in braces and has a complicated mouth. The older two have only had 2 cavities each and they were in the same location and found at that same age (almost 5yo for both of them). My youngest has had more because of all the crowding in her mouth.

[didadeewiththree]

Once every six months. If I wait longer than that, I usually have had a cavity. My kids have never had one though, but I think thats because they go often. That cleaning can find hidden plaque that you or your kids may not reach with a regular brush and flossing. I guess thats easy for me to say though, since I have dental insurance, if I didnt, it could be another story since I am a tightwad:)

Edited September 3, 2011 by neenee7

[Pretty in Pink]

Our children go to the dentist every six months, which is covered by insurance. So do we. Actually, our insurance paid for me to go every 3 months while pregnant this time...who knew?

[KRG]

every 6 months

[edelweiss]

Every six months. We don't have dental insurance (we don't think it is worth it). We just pay it out of pocket.

[*********]

Growing up, we didn't have dental. We went every year. X-rays every other year.

 

Now? We have insurance. We all go every six months.

 

That's funny Jennifer, 'cause that's exactly my story, too. :)

 

In your situation I would go once a year. But I would explain to the children why we are only going once a year! When I was a child, my next older sister and I never had ANYTHING wrong with our teeth, and my mom only took us once a year. I always heard at school and other places that you should go every six months and (although it sounds ridiculous now!) I concluded that since my mom didn't take me every six months, she didn't love me, when really I can see now that taking a child to the dentist who never has anything wrong with her teeth that often is just money down the drain LOL.

 

:iagree: Kids think strange things. If we didn't have insurance, I'd only take my boys once a year and get x-rays every other year. But that's because they both have great teeth. And I'd tell them that. They both know that the 'recommended' schedule is every six months, but I'd tell them that since their teeth are so healthy, mommy and daddy decided they only need to go once a year.