Mouthful

Teeth

Kids

Toddlers, teenagers, and the fight in between.

Editorial illustration: two rows of white pebbles close up

Shark Teeth, and Usually Nothing to Do

It is called shark teeth, it is common, and it usually resolves itself. There is one thing to do at home and one line at which it needs an appointment.

Editorial illustration: colorful childrens toothbrushes in cup

It Is Almost Never About the Teeth

Refusal is usually a sensory problem, not a behavior problem. Autistic adults who lived it, and parents who found what worked, describe what actually changed.

Editorial illustration: baby bottle close up minimal still life

They Are Placeholders, and the Place Is the Point

They hold the space the adult tooth has to arrive into, and losing one early is how orthodontics starts. Also: why caution about treatment is warranted too.

Editorial illustration: A worn child’s toothbrush with a frayed blue dinosaur handle, embedded in dried toothpaste and e

Nobody Warns You That You'll Still Be Doing It at Eight

Ask a room full of parents when they handed the toothbrush over for good. The answers cluster around seven to ten. Almost nobody says four.