Adolescents 13 to 18 years old

Adolescents are encouraged to enrol with Takapuna Dentists. We hold a contract with the District Health Board to treat adolescents under the government funded dental benefits. Free basic dental treatment is available for all teenagers until the day before their 18th birthday.

What is basic dental treatment?

Your dentist will be able to tell you what treatment is available for free under the adolescent contract. Basic treatment includes:

• an annual check-up
• examination and radiographs if necessary
• fissure sealants where relevant
• other preventative treatment like fluoride application
• root canal fillings
• extraction (but not orthodontic extractions)
• oral health education and encouragement to continue good oral health.

How to enrol

On your first visit to Takapuna Dentists we will give you an enrolment form to complete which we will forward off to the Dental Health Board to register for the Free dental treatment.

Things you and your child need to know about tooth decay:

• It’s caused by bacteria that lives in the mouth and feed on what you eat.
• These types of bacteria thrive on sugars, including those found in fruit and fruit juice, and starch from carbohydrates (ie bread, potatoes, rice and pasta).Within a few minutes of you eating or drinking, the bacteria spring into action, producing acids as they digest your food.
• These acids can penetrate the hard enamel of your tooth, dissolving the minerals (calcium and phosphate) in it.
• These acids can be neutralized by your saliva, which can also supply the minerals that may be lost from your tooth when it’s under attack. But if you have too many bacteria and not enough saliva or you eat too many foods that generate bacteria too often, your saliva can’t do it’s job properly and you can suffer from tooth decay.

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