Generally when someone buys auto insurance they do not think that just because they did not get into and accident that year, the money spent into having auto insurance was wasted. Yet for some reason for many people that is how they see dental insurance.

Yes it is important to take cost into account and make sure you are buying the right dental insurance plan that best fits your needs.  However, dental insurance is one type of insurance that you should be using to the fullest.  Unlike auto insurance where you use it when you get into and accident, dental insurance provides benefits for you to use in order to avoid having larger future needs. As well as still being there for you when larger dental care is needed.  In short if you feel the cost of insurance is a waste of money then you are probably not using your plan to it fullest.

Make sure to have your preventive dental care twice a year under most dental insurance plans preventive dental services are free. Normally preventive dental care includes office visits, oral evaluations, X-rays and basic cleanings.  Without out insurance for an individual these services can cost around $250.00.  Times that by two for your twice a year checkup and you are at $500.00. If you have a family of four you are talking over $2000.00 in dental care cost a year and that just for preventive services.

Here are some tips on getting your child to brush their teeth.

* Give some control. Set up toothbrush caddy with a toothbrushes, a colorful cup, a timer, and a mirror. This way they can can choose the brush, set the timer, and watch themselves while brushing.

* Turn brushing into a game. As you brush child teeth, tell your child you are scrubbing the upstairs and downstairs teeth, the front door, and the rooms in the back. Or that you are chasing cave monsters around his mouth. Or that you will brush for the length of a favorite song. This should enable you to brush his teeth for the recommended two minutes.

Consider buying an electric toothbrush for kids over three. They have been shown to do a considerably better job of removing plaque than manual brushes do.

Until your child is around five or six, he or she will not have the fine motor skills to maneuver the toothbrush. Therefore you will have to brush for him or her. When your child is around three, you can try placing your hand over his as he/she brushes.

Since we have talked about in prior post how a Dental PPO and Indemnity plans work and their limitation, when shopping for a dental insurance plan try asking yourself a few basic questions.  By doing this it will help you determent which plan is designed right for you.

* Do you need any major dental work right away: In prior posted we talked about plan waiting periods. Therefore dental plans with waiting periods of six months for basic services and 12 months for major services may not be best advise if you need immediate dental care.

* How much dental work is needed: With many plans having annual maximum it is important to fully understand your own dental care needs.  If you need to have multiple major procedures that will may push you over your annual max limit you either need to buy a dental plan with a higher max limitation or make sure to have services render as to not exceed your limitation without you knowing it.

* Are you trying to say with a dental provider:  One of the major positives about dental PPO’s and Indemnity plans is that you are able to normally choose your own dentist without having to only pick from a limited provider pool within the plan network. Yet if this is not important to you, you may want to review HMO plans with are normally lower in cost with fewer limitations.

Teething does not always go hand in hand with discomfort and sleepless nights. Many parents scarcely notice their child is teething until they spot a tiny pearl poking through their baby’s red gum. But some babies provide plenty of warning that teeth are on the way. Common symptoms in the weeks before teeth sprout include excessive crankiness, frequent crying, a change in appetite, lots of drooling, gnawing, and even ear pulling. Swelling in the gums is the source of the pain.

You can alleviate your baby’s discomfort by providing something to chomp on, such as chilled washcloth, cold teething toys, or rings filled with water. Distraction can also work. Give your baby a little extra one-on-one playtime, and lots of cuddling.

Many plans such as PPO’s and Indemnity dental insurance plans have waiting periods.  Even some HMO plans come with limited waiting periods.  However what are waiting periods how how do they effect you?   A waiting period is the number of months a plan member must be enrolled in the plan before certain procedures are covered by the insurance company. Typically, PPO and Indemnity plans will have a 6 month waiting period before basic services are covered and a 12 month waiting period before major services are covered.

Although waiting periods will very depending on each plan. When buying plans with waiting periods it is important to understand that there will not be coverages for dental services that fall into the waiting periods until you have had that plan for the stated time period.  Therefore buying this type of dental insurance when you have a toothache may not be the best fit and you may want to review HMO plans that do not have waiting periods or dental discount plans.

A pacifier can be very soothing to a teething baby. But sucking on a pacifier past age of three can make a bad overbite or cross bite worse. Also, some experts think that children with speech impediments (like lisps) should avoid pacifiers altogether since they may aggravate the situation. To figure out what is best for your child, talk with your baby dentist.

When buy a PPO or an Indemnity (Free choice of provider) plan it is important to understand what an annual maximum limitation is and how it effects you.  Let’s say you go to your dentist for your cleaning and check up. After some X-rays they discover you have a tooth with bad dental decay and you will need a crown.   If you go to an expensive dentist in order to get your crown you may run into what is called an annual maximum limitation.

To understand what this is a maximum limitation is the cap on what your dental insurance plan is willing to pay out for covered services provided each year per person.   A $1000 dollar annual maximum for an individual plan is common but they can range between $1000 – 2000.  With that in mind, before buying this type of dental insurance plan you should think of both your current and possible future needs in order to not exceed your annual maximum limitation.

Many of our family dental insurance plans provide access to more than 80,000 providers nationwide and include professional dentists located near your home.  Family dental care doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.  Family dental insurance will protect a family’s oral health and insure that trips to the dentist do not painfully affect the your wallet.

Family insurance dental plans are the greatest way to make sure healthy kids with great smiles and a strong mouth and teeth.  Family dental insurances include great benefits and coverage that includes everyone in your family.  Family members For most dental insurance plans are discussed in your household children under 18 years.  Family dental insurance for better oral health is a key aspect that creates a feeling of bond between the family members and is one of the most popular supplemental options for overall medical insurance policies.

There are a multitude of family dental insurance plans that can provide the right amount of coverage for your entire family at an affordable rate.  With a family dental insurance plan you will have access to oral surgeons, endodontists, pedodontists, periodontists and orthodontists. In addition, under an individual and family dental insurance plan basic preventative services such as teeth cleaning and oral exams are generally covered 100%.

Family dental insurance plan works absolutely for those who desire coverage for family members.  A family dental insurance plan is one of the most popular supplemental options for overall medical insurance policies.  Family dental insurance plan is a very great way to cover your family, at reduced costs and greater benefits.  Most people that have an individual or family dental insurance plan have it provided to them under an employer-sponsored group dental insurance plan.

When buying a dental PPO insurance plan understanding how it helps to reduce your dental care cost is important in buying the correct dental insurance plan for you and or your family.  PPO Dental insurance plans are based on a cost sharing concept.  That is where both you and your insurer pay a certain percentage of the cost for the dental procedure you receive.   There are three main categories of procedures and they will normally have different cost sharing breakdowns.

1) Diagnostic/Preventative Services:  Under this category it will normally include oral exam, some x-rays and your basic cleaning. Cost sharing coverages will very depending on the plan but typically the insurer pays 80 to 100 percent for these types of procedures and you pay 20 to 0 percent.

2) Basic (Restorative) Services: Under this category it will normally include silver (some limited resin) fillings for cavities, Simple tooth extractions and re-cementing of existing crowns and bridges.  Cost sharing coverages will very depending on the plan but typically the insurer pays 80 percent for these types of procedures where as you pay the remaining 20 percent.

3) Major Restorative Services:  Under this category it will normally include, crowns, partial and complete dentures, as well Endodontics (Pulpal therapy and root canals), Periodontics (Treatment of diseases of the gums), and Oral Surgery (Extractions and other oral surgery including pre and postoperative care) Cost sharing coverages will very depending on the plan but typically the insurer pays 50 percent for these types of procedures and you pay the other 50 percent.

4) Some PPO plans may offer a fourth category called corrective services: This generally includes orthodontia (braces).

Cost sharing will very and can be limited in coverages.   It is important to know that some PPO cost sharing is can also be based on a first second and third year bases where as each year the company increases their coverages to pay out more until the third year where it then stays the same for as long as you may continue to have the plan.

When your baby has several teeth, you can start brushing them with a soft-bristled toothbrush.   Use a baby tooth brush or kid size toothbrush since they are smaller and will fit your baby mouth better.

Once your baby’s first tooth appears, gently rub the tooth with a washcloth twice a day.   You must never put your baby to sleep with a baby bottle that has anything other then water, since the sugars in milk can cause tooth decay.

Before your baby start cutting his or her baby teeth,  make sure to clean your baby’s gums with a damp cloth a couple of times a day (ideally either after feedings or before sleeping) to get him or her used to the feeling which will also make it easier to clean their teeth as they come in.

Even though baby teeth do eventually fall out, it is still important to take proper care of them, as baby teeth are important for speech development, eating, and ensuring proper placement of permanent teeth.

Question:  I have a nine year old son.  I live in California but his Dad live is  Arizona.  I have my son on my dental insurance though work.  However eventhough his dad has dental insurance with is job, he will not add our son to his plan.

He says that our son can not have two dental plans.  I want him to be on his dad plan too because my plan is only good in CA.  So when my son is with his dad during the summer brake he may need to go to the dentist but can not. Is his dad correct or am I?  I do not want my son going without while he is in Arizona with is dad.  Advise please.

Answer:  It is okay for your son to have two dental insurance plans. The only thing you want to be careful of is cross coverages. Whatever dental services your son has started with one plan would need to be completed by that plan.

However it should not be a problem for your X to add him to his plan so in case something came up he would be able to take him to the dentist in AZ. He would be better off for it then paying dental cost out of his pocket since your plan does not cover for AZ. Maybe explain things to him that way and see if it helps

There is no need for toothpaste to be used initially on babies.  However, for toddlers who want to imitate their parents, use only a tiny amount of non-fluoridated paste (amount smaller than a pea, since infants and toddlers often swallow toothpaste). Keep using the non-fluoridated variety until your child can spit it all out, because swallowing too much fluoride can cause fluorosis, a discoloration of future permanent teeth

Question: I have a ten month old son.  He already has quite a few of his baby teeth in.  Right now all I am doing is wiping them with a warm damp towel.  When do I start using toothpaste and a brush?

Answer: You can start brushing you baby teeth now. Use a baby tooth brush. You can find baby tooth brush kits in the tooth paste section of your local food or drug stores. Also you should book you baby first dental appointment. It is advise that a baby should see a dentist when they cut their first tooth or no latter then their first birthday. The dentist will also be able to go over brushing tips with you for your baby.