Dentist...when did you start taking your kids?

So at our annual checkup the ped said it was time for the twins to go to the dentist at least twice a year. I thought it was around 3 or 4 years old. I called our dentist and they told us they charge $50 more for a cleaning on a young child. I have heard from a couple friends that when they took their kids for the first time it was like an exam of the teeth and tooth brushing, but nothing near to an adult cleaning.

So I am trying to figure out is $300 (combined) for their first dentist visit outrageous? Should I try to wait until we are about 6 months older so they will understand how to sit still better? If we go as a family of four we are looking at a $525 bill...ouch. We don't have dental insurance so everything is out of pocket. Don't get me wrong I want my kids to see the dentist and have healthy teeth, but it just seems like a really high price that doesn't include x-rays.

 

I think we were around that price as well. I took them this past spring? So almost 3.5 years old for their first visit. They did amazing, and I was surprised! And no x-rays either. It really was ten minutes tops-they go over the tools so they know what to expect, clean off a little plaque, brush, floss, done. I remember it being expensive and dh having a fit about it. We pay out of pocket as well.

 

We've been going to a pediatric dentist since they turned 1. We waited until our older DS was 3.5 for his first visit and he had a cavity. So, that made me anxious to get them in. Turns out he just has an issue with the acidity in his saliva and it had nothing to do with us waiting until he was 3.5.

We do have dental insurance, so we don't pay nearly that much for a visit - but your numbers look right. Why not take them now for a visit and then don't go again with them for another year? That way you are getting their first visit in, the dentist can see if there are any issues, and since they are still young they can go again in a year?

 

I take my girls to a pediatric dentist. A cleaning is $75 per kid. I took my girls at 3 for their first cleaning. They did clean Ava's teeth and floss them just like an adult cleaning but Addison clamped her mouth down like an alligator and would not let the hygienist nor the dentist touch her!

I take them every 6 months and just last month Addison let them clean her teeth she was 4.5

 

We started taking all of our kids for routine cleanings every 6 months at age 3. I have no idea about the cost, ours is fully covered by insurance & I never see a bill.

 

Hi there -

I have my girls scheduled to go to the dentist for the first time in a month - they'll be 3 in October. They charge $191 per kid (!) for the first visit. We don't have dental insurane and I am kind of in shock over how much it costs. If it isn't spectacular and the girls don't leave singing about the dentist I am going to find a cheaper option.

 

Our first visit was around 3 and we've been going every 6 months since then. I really don't know how much ours cost either because I have dental insurance.

 

2 years is when we start, right after the 2 year molars come in. The dentist told us they won't do a real first cleaning until 3 though. We start early to get them used to the dentist office and so they can see there is nothing scary.

 

If you don't have dental insurance, sometimes if you're a member of a credit union, you can sign up with them for a negligible amount per month, like $12-$20/family.

Or you can do some research online and find a place like this. My family plan would be less than $16 a month for my zip code.

 

We didn't start till right around the kids 4th birthday. I hate going to the dentist so I kept putting it off. No issues or concerns at their 1st appointment. Their appointment was very similar to an adult appointment, minus the stays.

 

I was in the exact same boat you are in. My husband is a state trooper and we can't get dental insurance through his job. So we took them at 2.5 and all the dentist did was look at their teeth for 30 seconds and it cost us $125.

We just got private dental insurance last month through Humana One. I applied online. So now I am paying $57 a month but all 5 of us are covered and it doesn't cost us anything out of pocket to go to the dentist. I just brought the girls for their first cleaning yesterday. The dentist told us that 3 things determine if your kids will have cavities and the # 1 thing is genetics. Are you or your husband susceptible to cavities? I've never had a cavity in my life, and my husband has had 1, so my girls have nothing wrong with their teeth and probably never will. Do you brush their teeth? The most important thing I learned from the dental visit at 2.5 years old was that either DH or I needs to brush their teeth twice a day. Before that we were having them do it themselves.

If they are not having any problems with their teeth and you are concerned about the cost I would make sure to brush them twice a day, and maybe call and have a dentist give them a quick check but skip the cleaning until they are older. Even at 3.5 my two weren't very cooperative with the cleaning and honestly I don't think that quick cleaning from the dentist did much for their teeth. I think the whole purpose is to get them comfortable with going to the dentist.

 

bad mommy here! mine are going to the dentist for the first time next month and they are 5!

 

My girls will be four in October and we haven't gone yet. I hate the dentist so I have been procratinating. Ugh. I do have insurance but assumed there would be a huge co-pay so that is a concern, too, since we are on a very tight budget. How did you all choose your dentist? I've been to some great dentists and some terrible ones, so I just want to make sure the experience isn't too traumatic!

 

We still need to go... dh just never gives me the insurance info so I can't even take an appointment. No idea where either.. sigh.

 

we have family dental insurance, and our dental bill was close to $270 ea child!! but that was a cleaning, exam, xrays and flouride treatment and consult with me at the end. they were champs and did it all by themselves right at 3yo !!

anyway, I'm not sure I would have done it w/o insurance... but with insurance I'll be going 2x a year. Brushing is a huge thing to preventing cavities and I was really glad to see on the xrays that there are none yet. I am REALLY prone to cavities and I'm sure my ds has inherited my crooked teeth - so I'm sure there will be orthodontic visits in our future... but I hope we can prevent the cavities now. especially with the flouride treatment they give them.

 

We go to a general dentist; their first visit was when they were 3.5 yo, but that was just watching me get my teeth cleaned, then they got to ride in the chair, and the hygenist counted their teeth (just to get them used to the idea). They didn't charge us for that. At their first official visit, they got the works, scrape, polish, fluoride, no xrays. I can't remember how much it ran, but it was probably about $100 for each of them. So a bit cheaper, but I also live in a cheap area and it's not a pediatric dentist.

ETA: they were just about four at their first real visit

 

I took them for the first time when they were 3, but they hardly let the dentist do anything (I think Amy let her count her teeth and clean the front 4 top and bottom; Sarah would barely open her mouth). The dentist said that was normal for the first time, and she didn't charge me for a full cleaning, just something nominal for her time. The second visit went much better.

We do have insurance, so I don't know how much it cost.

 

I took mine for the first time when they were about 3 1/2 and we go to a regular family dentist. When one had cavities that needed to be filled, we went to a pediatric dentist for that. They definitely don't do a full cleaning like they do with adults, but they do clean and polish their teeth, plus a fluoride treatment. We actually just went this Monday and the twins had both their cleanings in the time it took to do my one cleaning. My insurance pays for all of it so I don't know how much it costs.

I have to say, my kids LOVE going to the dentist. (I think there might be something wrong with them!!) They get little goodie bags, so I think that helps. They also get free toothpaste samples and toothbrushes so I haven't bought either in years. They even give me a goodie bag with toothpaste and a toothbrush!

 

oh... about the $50 more for the child's cleaning... I wonder if that's b/c they do everything else, but they also do a flouride treatment?? anyway good luck with your decision.

 

We took our girls right before their 3rd birthday. I'm not quite sure all of what they did, but I think it was a regular cleaning like they would do on an adult, and they also did x-rays too. I'm sure it depends on what dentist you go to, what they will do.

 

I took my girls after their first birthday. Mostly to get teeth counted and start them getting comfortable with someone poking around their mouth other than me. The first visit was complimentary as nothing really happened other than showing the doctor their teeth by laying them on my lap upside down and tickling them so they would open their mouth long enough for the dentist to see if anything popped out. A bit of history though: I had/have extremely bad teeth and when I was younger horrible dentist/orthodontist experiences. I want my girls to be comfortable with it.

The dentist suggested that when my husband and I have a cleaning that we bring the girls so they can see what is going on, etc... So we have been doing that (expect for the last root canal- uh no...). I just took them in for their 2 year visit and the hygentist let them get comfortable with the tools and the area by allowing them to explore it. I have to say that we do have dental insurance for them so these visits are covered- if I didn't have insurance and had to pay out of pocket I might just hold them down and dig in their mouths myself!

Also, I have found that the little toothpick flossers work great for them. They see me use them and then they want to try it. This way I can get stuff out without such a fight. And my girls like to brush their teeth (sometimes it is to suck on the brush, but when they ask everytime we are in their bathroom, I never say no because I want them in the habit.).

 

There's no way you could call what they do to a 2 year old a cleaning, not with my kids at that age. They don't like having anyone poke around in their mouths at all!!! I had Spencer in this week and it was a battle just for her to even count how many he had. But we did manage to get a bit of a flouride treatment on him. We do have dental insurance, so I'm not sure what it costs. I'll have to pay attention when the EoB comes.

Genetics is the deal! And sadly my twins have got my horrible teeth... I think only one of my other kids has had a cavity, but they've each had a handful and they're only 5 1/2 (and we brush and floss all the time). DH has had 1 cavity in his life (when he was 32, and it was very minor). I have teeth that are held together by fillings. Sabrina got her first cavity at 2, before I'd even thought about taking her to the dentist. It was right in a front tooth, so even I could see it. My oldest 3 all went for the first time when they were about 3 1/2.

Except for Spencer, mine love it, too. They don't even mind getting cavities filled, which is nuts to me. The dentist always says she wishes she could clone my kids because they hold so still and are so easy to work on. Now if only they didn't need to go as much as they do.