Cutting teeth isn’t one of those milestones a baby reaches all at once. Transitioning from that gummy grin to a mouthful of gleaming teeth is a rite of passage that can take your little one three years to complete. Whenever the first tooth peeks through, celebrate it by taking pictures and noting its arrival date in your child’s baby book.

By the time your little one is 3, he’ll have a mouthful of choppers that he can brush himself, a basic step on the road to self care. (Because he won’t have the skills to do a good job, though, be sure to lend him a hand until he’s at least 6 years old.)

Check the myths and facts below to find out how cavities are caused, prevented, and treated.

1. Sugar Is the Prime Cause of Cavities

Myth and fact. In reality, it’s the acid produced by bacteria in your mouth that causes cavities, says Harms. What the bacteria do, however, is eat carbohydrates — and sugar is one of them. Rice, potatoes, bread, and fruits and vegetables are also carbohydrates.

When you eat anything with carbs, the bacteria become active and produce acid that then eats into your tooth.

Special Olympics Special Smiles is part of the Healthy Athlete program that has been serving Special Olympic Athletes for over 10 Years. The program offers free health screenings, referrals to health care providers and training to students and professionals about the needs of people with intellectual disabilities. Healthy Athletes has a presence in over 90 countries. At more than 700,000 screenings in 92 countries, volunteer health professionals have brought free preventative medicine and care to athletes in dire need of basic checkups, and sometimes more.

Although we do not expect our children to come home with tooth in hand from a hard fall, it is something we should be prepared for. Below are different situations that you may find yourself in and some tips to help you through them.

First it is important to have a family dentist that you trust and your children trust. It is also important that you know the hours of business and emergency contact information.