When should parents take their children to the dentist the first time?

 It is so important to make an appointment with a dentist by the time he/she is one years old.  I liken this visit to the "well-baby check-up" only it is with the dentist and it will be a "well-teeth checkup" .  It gives the parents an opportunity to get current information on the care of the teeth and make sure everything is progressing on schedule.  Don't worry about having the baby placed in the dental chair and examined.  That won't happen because this visit is more for information than actual examination.  Outdated recommendation was to wait until the child was about 3 years old and sometimes that was too late.  Children often had cavities by that time.  The dentist/dental hygienist will give appropriate information about

• how to clean the baby's mouth,
• the items to use to clean the baby's mouth,
• when to let children start brushing teeth,
• recommendations for teething babies, 
• answer questions about pacifier use or thumb sucking. 

Physicians, unintentionally, have been known to give misinformation about some of these topics.