Flourosis

[JMum]

Hello
I have 3 children aged 10 -15 and recently at a dental check up the dentist informed me all 3 children have flourosis especially on their back teeth. One child I was aware of but was surprised to hear of the other two, especially as it was never mentioned by previous dentists. The dentist seemed baffled as to how 3 children had it and deemed it strange and not very common. He was asking questions like illness as children, did they eat lots of toothpaste as children -which they probably did as all children do but not excessively. He concluded that it could have been caused by a virus or chickenpox. It did occur to me that flouride is added to baby formula and they all were fed the same brand from birth until around age 2. Does anyone know if there is any connection?
Many thanks

 

[Dr M]

The fluoride that is added to baby formula is usually a relatively low concentration of fluoride. Doubt if this is the cause. Could be due to a viral or bacterial infection at the time of development of the relevant teeth or it can also be a genetic factor.
These affected teeth might make the enamel difficult for any filling to bond to. You will need to keep an eye on these teeth, and when your children are older, they can consider placing crowns on these teeth in order to protect them.