While teaching good flossing and brushing habits to children is crucial to the maintenance of healthy teeth, the WDA encourages parents to use dental sealants as a preventive measure to help keep their children's teeth cavity-free.

Children can benefit the most from the use of dental sealants. The chewing surfaces of children's newly erupted permanent teeth are highly susceptible to dental caries (tooth decay). Therefore, sealants are an excellent form of preventive maintenance to stop cavities before they start.

A dental sealant is a thin plastic film painted on the chewing surfaces of molars and premolars (the teeth directly in front of the molars) to prevent plaque from collecting in the pits and fissures of those teeth. Accepted by the American Dental Association (ADA) Council on Dental Therapeutics in 1972, sealants are widely recognized by dental health experts as a means to prevent cavities and dental decay.

Studies have proven that properly applied sealants are 100 percent effective in protecting the surfaces of teeth from dental caries, or decay. Acting as a barrier, the sealant prohibits small particles of food or bacteria from penetrating areas of teeth more susceptible to decay. As long as the sealant stays intact, cavities will not develop in the area covered by the sealant.

In fact, research has shown that sealants placed on top of a cavity in the early stages of decay development can arrest the caries by cutting off the supply of nutrients to the cavity. Even cavities large enough to be seen on an X-ray or dental radiograph do not become worse when a sealant is used.

Research also has shown that everyone has a 95 percent chance of eventually experiencing caries in the pits an fissures of their teeth, if sealants are not used in those areas. Sealants are less costly than fillings or other dental procedures. This procedure makes good financial sense for the consumer.

According to a 1995 ADA survey, sealants cost an average of $24 per tooth, while the average cost for fillings is $53.

To apply a sealant, the surface of the tooth must be thoroughly cleaned and rinsed. A conditioning solution or gel is applied to the enamel surrounding the pits or fissures. After approximately one minute, the tooth is rinsed with water and the site dried. The sealant is applied and allowed to harden. Depending on the number of teeth that need to be sealed, this procedure can take anywhere from five to forty-five minutes.

The application of dental sealants is an extremely simple procedure to perform and does not cause any discomfort for the patient. Because of their simplicity and effectiveness, from a health standpoint, sealants make excellent sense for both children and adults.

Sealants can last anywhere from five to 10 years, but are not permanent. Regular dental check-ups are still necessary to track the effectiveness of a sealant as well as to clean teeth and to detect and provide early treatment for dental diseases.