Mastication/Chewing:

Children need their milk teeth to chew food properly. If milk teeth are shed off in early-stage and permanent teeth are not yet erupted then it will not only cause discomfort, pain, and abscess but also unable to eat which results in malnourishment.

Smile:

Children need milk teeth to smile. Blackened or missing teeth can lead to teasing at school which affects a child’s psychosocial development.

Facial Development:

Milk teeth are needed for normal growth of jaw bone and jaw muscles and give appropriate shape to the face.

Space Maintainer for Permanent Teeth:

Milk teeth maintain space for permanent teeth and act as a guide for the eruption of permanent teeth. If they are shed off earlier, it can cause crowding of permanent teeth in later stages and cause difficulty in chewing, TMJ problems, facial asymmetric, and decaying of teeth.

Speech:

Milk teeth help in the development of speech, tongue produces sounds in the presence of teeth children have difficulties to pronounce sounds like “th” and “f” in the absence of front teeth.

Summary:

Hence, this is so important to maintain the oral hygiene of children so that milk teeth remain healthy until the eruption of permanent teeth. Regular visits to the dentist are very important.