Baby bottle tooth decay is a type of cavity that affects infants and toddlers who use bottles. It commonly appears in children aged 0 to 3, mainly on the four upper front teeth.

In most cases, it starts with the habit of falling asleep with a bottle in the mouth. When a child falls asleep, saliva production drops, which reduces saliva's self-cleaning action (the mouth's natural ability to clean itself). If the sugar in milk or breast milk pools in the mouth and meets bacteria, cavities can form.

In the early stage, it may not be noticeable or the symptoms may be mild, but the following changes gradually appear.

If left untreated, it can damage the nerve inside the tooth and cause pain, or in severe cases, weaken the tooth until it breaks.

If treatment is delayed, the tooth may need to be extracted early. If a baby tooth is removed too early, there may not be enough space for the permanent tooth to come in, which increases the chance of malocclusion (crooked teeth).