# Day 203: Varnish and water

> Fluoride varnish prevented about 37% of decay in baby teeth in a Cochrane review. Whether your tap water is fluoridated, why fluoride drops are contested, and the one question to ask.

- Series: Your seventh month, day by day (https://chorevia.com/learn/seventh-month), day 203 of 365, week 28
- Canonical URL: https://chorevia.com/learn/seventh-month/day-203
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-21
- Publisher: Chorevia (https://chorevia.com)
- Cite as: Chorevia. "Day 203: Varnish and water." Last reviewed October 21, 2026. https://chorevia.com/learn/seventh-month/day-203

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Yesterday was the brush. Today is the two other things that protect a first tooth, one your pediatrician does and one that comes out of your tap, and a question worth asking instead of guessing.

## Heart

Once teeth appear, the AAP and the US Preventive Services Task Force recommend fluoride varnish, which your pediatrician can paint on at a visit ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx)). It takes a minute. In a Cochrane review, varnish prevented about 37% of decay in baby teeth, with moderate-quality evidence ([Marinho et al., 2013](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23846772/)). If a tooth came in before the 6-month visit, it may already have happened ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-6-Months-Old.aspx)); if the tooth arrives this month, the 9-month visit includes varnish once teeth are in ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-9-Months-Old.aspx)).

## Head

The second protector is water. Fluoridated tap water helps protect teeth, and the few sips your baby is learning to take from a cup can come straight from the tap ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Recommended-Drinks-for-Young-Children-Ages-0-5.aspx)). If your tap water isn't fluoridated, the AAP's advice is to ask your pediatrician or dentist about your baby's cavity risk ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/oral-health/Pages/FAQ-Fluoride-and-Children.aspx)). What used to be the automatic next step, fluoride drops, is now contested: in October 2025 the FDA said these unapproved products shouldn't be used before age 3 ([FDA](https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-acts-protect-children-unapproved-fluoride-drug-products)), while the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry still supports them after a risk assessment ([AAPD](https://www.aapd.org/statement-on-recent-fda-announcement-to-fluoride-supplements/)). Two expert bodies, two answers. Yours comes from the pediatrician who knows your water and your baby.

## Body

The third protector is a dentist. Plan a first dental visit after the first tooth and by the first birthday ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx)). Meanwhile, the daily part is yours: the rice-grain smear twice a day ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/oral-health/Pages/FAQ-Fluoride-and-Children.aspx)), and water, not juice, in the cup; babies under 12 months shouldn't have juice ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/feeding-nutrition/Pages/Starting-Solid-Foods.aspx)).

## Try today

### The water question

- **Time:** 10 minutes, with a notepad
- **From the guide:** [Caring for first teeth](https://chorevia.com/learn/6-months#caring-for-first-teeth)

1. Find out whether your tap water is fluoridated. If you don't know, write "Is our tap water fluoridated?" as the first question for your pediatrician or dentist ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/oral-health/Pages/FAQ-Fluoride-and-Children.aspx)).
2. If it is: the sips from a cup can be plain tap water, which helps protect teeth ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Recommended-Drinks-for-Young-Children-Ages-0-5.aspx)). Write "tap water in the cup."
3. If it isn't, or you use bottled or filtered water: write "What's our baby's cavity risk, and what do you recommend?" ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/oral-health/Pages/FAQ-Fluoride-and-Children.aspx)), and note that drops are contested so the answer is theirs to give ([FDA](https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-acts-protect-children-unapproved-fluoride-drug-products); [AAPD](https://www.aapd.org/statement-on-recent-fda-announcement-to-fluoride-supplements/)).
4. Under it, write "varnish?" for the next visit ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx)).

**Make it work:** Put the page with the 9-month-visit questions. A question written down is a question that gets asked.

## Watch for

- **Normal:** a white fleck on the lower gum that's hard under your finger, or nothing there at all ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx)). **Go to the ER now** if your baby has a seizure with a fever, a stiff neck, or a bulging soft spot ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever)).
- **Normal:** a cold, wet washcloth gnawed to shreds; that's one of the three simple soothers the AAP suggests ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx)). **Call 911** if your baby has purple or blood-colored spots on the skin, or can't be woken ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever)).
- **Normal:** most of a sip of water running down the chin. **Call your pediatrician right away** if your baby seems dehydrated: no urine in more than 8 hours, dark urine, a very dry mouth, or no tears ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever)).

## For you

Ask, don't guess. This is a month where a search engine will hand you two confident, opposite answers about fluoride drops, and both of them are real: a federal agency and a dental academy disagree in public ([FDA](https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-acts-protect-children-unapproved-fluoride-drug-products); [AAPD](https://www.aapd.org/statement-on-recent-fda-announcement-to-fluoride-supplements/)). You are not supposed to settle that. You're supposed to ask one person who knows your water, your baby's teeth, and the current advice, and then do what they say.

That's a relief, not a cop-out. Not every question in your life needs you to become the expert.

If you're the partner: find out about the water. One call to the utility, or one look at the bill, and the first question is answered before the visit.

## Sources

- DiMaggio D, Cernigliaro J. "Baby's First Tooth: 7 Facts Parents Should Know." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2022. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/teething-tooth-care/Pages/Babys-First-Tooth-Facts-Parents-Should-Know.aspx
- Marinho VCC, Worthington HV, Walsh T, Clarkson JE. "Fluoride varnishes for preventing dental caries in children and adolescents." *Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews*, 2013. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23846772/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Checkup Checklist: 6 Months Old." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2023. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-6-Months-Old.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Checkup Checklist: 9 Months Old." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2021. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-9-Months-Old.aspx
- Muth ND. "Recommended Drinks for Children Age 5 & Younger." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2023. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/nutrition/Pages/Recommended-Drinks-for-Young-Children-Ages-0-5.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Oral Health. "Fluoride for Children: Parent FAQs." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2025. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/oral-health/Pages/FAQ-Fluoride-and-Children.aspx
- US Food and Drug Administration. "FDA Acts to Protect Children from Unapproved Fluoride Drug Products." 2025. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-acts-protect-children-unapproved-fluoride-drug-products
- American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. "AAPD Statement on Recent FDA Announcement Related to Fluoride Supplements." 2025. https://www.aapd.org/statement-on-recent-fda-announcement-to-fluoride-supplements/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "When Can Babies Start Solid Foods? Readiness & Feeding Tips." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/feeding-nutrition/Pages/Starting-Solid-Foods.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Fever" (symptom checker). HealthyChildren.org, accessed 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever