A thin coating of sealant painted on the chewing surface of the teeth bonds to grooves and forms a shield over the enamel to effectively prevent tooth decay. Brushing and flossing will remove most food particles and plaque on smooth surfaces, but the bacteria can hide in uneven surfaces at the back of the mouth and between teeth. Sealants do a great job of protecting these vulnerable areas.

Who Should Get Sealants?

Children from ages six to fourteen are particularly vulnerable to cavities, so this is a critical age to have sealants. Adults could also benefit from sealants on cavity-free biting surfaces to keep those teeth free of decay—particularly adults who have difficulty brushing. 

What Research Says About Sealants

A CDC report states that dental sealants prevent 80% of cavities for two years and 50 % up to four years. According to the CDC, the sealants can stay in the mouth for up to nine years. Only about 43 percent of 6- to 11-year-old children have dental sealants. School-age children without sealants are three times more likely to have cavities than children with sealants. The CDC reported that applying sealants in school-based programs to the nearly 7 million children from low-income households who don't have them could save up to $300 million in dental treatment costs.

Some potential problems may require the reapplication of sealants. Studies detect slight exposure of BPA in saliva for three hours after a procedure which returns to baseline within 24 hours. No findings of BPA in blood serum, and there are no reports of adverse reactions. This finding is much less severe than other exposures resulting from treatments for tooth decay. 

Long-term benefits

Sealants are a painless procedure, well tolerated by most people with the long-term benefits of cavity-free molars. Adults can also benefit from sealants because our exposure to decay increases with age, and saliva's protective quality and biochemistry change over time.