Dental Caries

During your teeth cleaning the dentist will come by and examine
your teeth. They will look at your x-rays and then inside your
mouth. During this exam you may hear the dentist say that you
have dental caries.
Dental caries is another name for a cavity!
WHAT CAUSES A
WHAT IS A CAVITY?
A cavity develops when CAVITY?
a tooth decays or 01 When the food you eat and germs called
bacteria, build up on your teeth, they
breaks down. It begins create dental plaque.
as a small hole in your Plaque is a clear sticky substance that
clings to your teeth. Some of the
tooth that can grow bacteria in plaque produces acid.

larger and deeper over

time.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? 02 Eating carbohydrates like

cookies and candy create even
Having a cavity is no fun, but the dentist is here to help! more acid!
The dentist removes the decayed portion of your tooth
(the cavity) using their tools. Next, they fill that space
with a special dental material. The result is called a
03 If dental plaque is not removed by
brushing and flossing, the acid can eat
away at the outer layer of the tooth,
called enamel.
“filling”. This is the beginning of a cavity!
A filling will stop the progression of the cavity so it cannot
grow larger or deeper.

HOW TO PREVENT TOOTH DECAY

Brush your teeth with fluoride toothpaste at Your dentist may recommend a
least 2X a day sealant
Floss at least once a day A sealant is a special dental
Regular visits to the dentist material applied to the
Limit or eliminate candy and junk food chewing surfaces of your
Limit or eliminate sugary drinks like soda teeth in areas called pits
and juice and fissures. A sealant fills
areas of the tooth that
cannot be cleaned by a
toothbrush!
Let's work together to prevent cavities!
 Created by: Reyna Gutierrez
DH132 Visual Aid

Sources:
Collaborate & Create Amazing Graphic Design for free - CANVA. Canta. (n.d.).
Retrieved April 27, 2022, from https://www.canva.com/ (template and graphics)

Experts, K. H. M. (Ed.). (n.d.). What's a cavity? (for kids) . KidsHealth. Retrieved April 26, 2022,
from https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/cavity.html

Harris, N. O., Garcia-Godoy, F., & Nathe, C. N. (2014). Primary preventative dentistry (8th
ed.). Pearson.

Magid Dental Care. (2016, December 29). Why we recommend dental sealants. Magid
Dental Care Blog. Retrieved April 26, 2022, from
https://www.magiddentalcare.com/blog/recommend-dental-sealants/5695 (sealant
graphic)

Smile Humboldt. (n.d.). Prevent Dental Decay. Smile Humboldt. Retrieved April 27, 2022,
from https://smilehumboldt.com/prevent-dental-decay (graphic)