Should You Get Dental Sealants for Your Kids?

Putting plastic, or dental sealants, in your child’s mouth may sound like a bad idea, but it works to keep tooth decay away. Here's what you should know.

Your children’s dentist may have brought up dental sealants when your kids were small, between the ages of five and seven. The idea is to put a plastic coating on teeth (or dental sealants), usually molars. Dental sealants fill in any grooves or holes and help prevent bacteria from lodging inside the teeth and making cavities.

Twelve-year molars usually arrive between the ages of 11 and 14. They are also good candidates for a dental sealant.

Are dental sealants safe?

The most common dental sealants contain bisphenol A (BPA), an industrial chemical that concerns many parents. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned BPA in baby bottles, sippy ups, and packaging for infant formula. BPA has been linked to dangers such as earlier puberty, infertility, breast and prostate cancers, and polycystic ovary syndrome.

Americans are exposed to BPA in food through plastic packaging, kitchenware, and the inner coatings of cans and jar caps. BPA is also used in toys and other plastic items.

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It’s true that BPA shows up in saliva just after the sealant treatment, for up to three hours. But BPA isn’t detected a day after the dental treatment. The American Dental Association encourages sealants, saying that “there is no health concern,” and the FDA has not banned the use of BPA in sealants.

It’s impossible to live a BPA-free life. As a parent, you’ll need to weigh not only the risks of BPA but also the risk of skipping the sealant: more cavities.

Although the most common type of sealant is based on plastic resin, another type using glass is available. It also contains fluoride. Both types seem to be equally effective at preventing cavities, but the resin-based plastic may last longer. If the BPA issue bothers you, discuss safety and the glass option with your dentist.

Do dental sealants work?

In one survey, the well-regarded Cochrane group looked at 12 studies that compared the teeth of children who had sealants and those who did not. The results involved more than 2,500 volunteers, adding up the studies. It turned out that dental sealants reduced cavities for at least four years.

In one randomized trial, a group of children developed cavities in 77 percent of their teeth without the coating by their mid-to-late teens. Only 27 percent of the coated teeth had cavities. Another randomized trial had roughly similar results, concluding that sealants cut cavity rates by more than half.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends dental sealants for children.

Many states have launched programs to apply the plastic coatings to kids’ teeth in the schools, since less than a third of six-, seven- and eight-year-olds now have them. Applying the coating costs about $30 to $60 per tooth, and could save money, since it can more than $100 to fix one cavity.

Sealants aren’t a substitute for good habits

Teach kids to brush at least twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste and floss every night. Not every town has fluoride in the water — or you may use purified or well water at home. Consider asking your dentist for fluoride supplements, since fluoride toothpaste alone isn’t enough protection.

If your children eat sticky sweet foods like gummies or fruit leather, or drink soda or juice, teach them to rinse their mouth with water or brush their teeth to wash away the sugar. Also have them rinse or brush after taking a sweetened liquid medicine.

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