Keeping Children's Teeth Healthy

(CBS)  Dr. Philip Abramsky knows that for any kid fearing the dentist, tricks are a good way to burst the bubble.

"It's a wonderful ice-breaker," says Dr. Abramsky. "Magic is something that everyone usually likes. It's a distractive mechanism. It's colorful. It's fun. It allows them to interact with me. And it's not just some guy coming at them with dental instruments saying, 'Okay, let's fix your teeth.'"

At four years old, Katie Parker knows why she is taking her first trip to the dentist.

"To keep [my] teeth healthy and not get yellow," says Katie.

"It's important for a young child to come to the dentist obviously for many reasons," says Dr. Abramsky. "One is to make certain that everything is healthy in a developing child's mouth, to acclimate them to the experience of dentistry, because at some point they will, quote, need dentistry."

And having her mom in on the act makes it a little more magical.

"I think it will make her next visit even better knowing that when I go through it, it's a good experience," says her mother Careena Parker.

Dr. Abramsky says it's wonderful for a child to know that the parent is nearby.

"It's probably even more important that they know the parent's here for a reason as well, for the same reason they're here," he says.

But for now, the trick is to make sure that everything is okay.

Dr. David Curtis, president of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, visited Monday's The Early Show to provide some child dentistry tips.

He says dentists recommend kids go to the dentist prior to or around their first birthday. By the time kids are 3 to 4 years old, they have significant oral diseases.

Dr. Curtis says if dentists examines babies' teeth, they have the opportunity to share important information with parents. Prevention is the name of the game, he explains.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends parents to get to know and look into their kids mouths after they are educated by dentist with what to observe.

Kids learn to brush their teeth gradually over time. They can hold a toothbrush at 18 months to 2 years old. But, Dr. Curtis says, children need supervision until they're 8 or 9 years old.

For kids, going to the dentist should be an interactive environment with communication, according to Dr. Curtis.