Children's Dental Care Milestones
A timeline of important dental care milestones from infancy through the teenage years.
Establishing good dental habits early in life sets the foundation for a lifetime of healthy smiles. Understanding the key milestones in your child’s dental development helps you provide the right care at the right time and catch potential issues before they become serious problems.
Birth to 12 Months: The First Teeth
Even before teeth appear, oral care should begin. After feedings, gently wipe your baby’s gums with a clean, damp cloth to remove bacteria and sugar residue. This simple practice helps establish a routine and keeps gums healthy for incoming teeth.
Most babies get their first tooth around six months of age, though the timing varies widely. The lower central incisors typically appear first, followed by the upper central incisors. Once the first tooth erupts, begin brushing with a rice-grain-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste and a soft infant toothbrush.
Schedule your child’s first dental visit by their first birthday or within six months of the first tooth appearing, whichever comes first. This early visit allows the dentist to check for any developmental concerns and provides an opportunity for parents to ask questions about feeding, pacifier use, and teething.
Ages 1 to 3: Building the Foundation
By age three, most children have a full set of 20 primary teeth. These baby teeth play a critical role in speech development, proper nutrition, and guiding permanent teeth into their correct positions.
Continue brushing your child’s teeth twice daily, increasing the toothpaste amount to a pea-sized dab around age three. At this age, children lack the manual dexterity to brush effectively on their own, so parents should do the brushing with the child’s cooperation.
Avoid putting your child to bed with a bottle of milk, juice, or formula, as the sugars bathe the teeth overnight and can cause early childhood caries, sometimes called bottle rot. If a bedtime bottle is necessary, fill it with water only.
Ages 3 to 6: Developing Independence
This is the stage where children begin learning to brush on their own, though they still need supervision and help reaching back teeth. Make brushing fun with timers, songs, or themed toothbrushes featuring their favorite characters.
Introduce flossing once teeth begin to touch, typically around age three to four. Floss picks designed for children can make this process easier for both parent and child.
Your dentist may recommend dental sealants for your child’s first permanent molars, which usually arrive around age six. Sealants are thin protective coatings applied to the chewing surfaces of back teeth, reducing the risk of cavities by up to 80 percent.
Ages 6 to 12: The Mixed Dentition Stage
Between ages six and twelve, children go through the transition from primary to permanent teeth. This mixed dentition stage can look alarming to parents, with gaps, crowding, and teeth that seem too large for the face. Most of these concerns resolve naturally as the jaw grows and more permanent teeth arrive.
This is also the age when orthodontic evaluations become important. The American Association of Orthodontists recommends a first orthodontic evaluation by age seven. Early intervention can guide jaw growth and create space for incoming teeth, potentially reducing the need for more extensive treatment later.
The Teenage Years: Orthodontics and Wisdom Teeth
Adolescence is the most common time for braces or clear aligners. Good oral hygiene becomes especially important during orthodontic treatment, as brackets and wires create additional surfaces where plaque can accumulate.
Wisdom teeth typically begin to emerge between ages 17 and 25. Your dentist will monitor their development with periodic X-rays and recommend extraction if they are impacted, misaligned, or likely to cause problems.