As parents, you are responsible for ensuring your child adopts and maintains good dental habits for proper oral hygiene. Since children are more prone to eating sugary foods and drinks, they must understand the need to make sure their teeth remain healthy and how to avoid any chances of cavities or tooth decay. Untreated dental issues can cause damage to the tooth, affecting their day-to-day lives and self-esteem. Here are some tips that can help you avoid the adverse effects of poor oral health.
1. Start Brushing Early
Gently rub a soft wet washcloth over the baby’s gums even before getting the first tooth. It cleans the gums from any leftover milk or formula. It can be essential in building an oral health routine since it makes it easy to transition into brushing your teeth regularly later. Once teeth start forming, use a toothbrush with soft bristles and water to prevent the baby from swallowing fluoride.
2. Avoid A Bottle At Bedtime
Putting your baby to bed with a bottle of milk or sweet juice can be tempting. But the sugar in the juice or milk can cling to their teeth, leading to tooth decay. A decrease in saliva production and flow during sleep can also increase the chances of tooth decay. If giving your child a bottle before bed is unavoidable, wipe their gums and teeth with a clean, damp cloth before sleep. Alternatively, you can give them water instead of a drink with sugar.
3. Prevent Misalignment
While pacifiers and thumb sucking are soothing and comfort your baby, they can harm developing mouths. Using a pacifier or thumb sucking for tooth long can lead to misalignment and other dental problems later in life.
4. Make An Appointment After The First Tooth
Generally, the first tooth starts to show around six months and consulting a dentist during this time can help you understand and ask about concerns about your child’s dental health. Everything from preventive care to examination to ensure the teeth are emerging as normal and other factors influence your child’s dental hygiene.
5. Ensure A Healthy Diet
A balanced diet is essential for growth and development, including dental health. Opt for fruits, vegetables, lean protein, and dairy products over high-sugar snacks. And remember that your child is likely to copy you, so don’t expect your child to stick to carrot sticks when you munch on chips and drink soda. Fluoride is also essential to maintain a healthy mouth since it is a natural mineral that helps the enamel of your teeth to be more resistant to tooth decay. Use fluoride toothpaste while brushing.
6. Brush Twice A Day
Younger children may need your assistance in brushing their teeth and require supervision to ensure they brush them properly for at least two minutes to avoid any food debris that attracts cavity-causing bacteria. You can make this more fun by showing them child-friendly animated videos of proper brushing techniques with music to keep them engaged. Try things that can help them look forward to this time of the day and treat it as something fun instead of a chore to instil it as a habit.
Avoid sharing any utensils, sippy cups, bottles, pacifiers, toothbrushes or other items your kid uses with others. It can cause bacteria to be transmitted from their mouth to your child’s, which is unhealthy. Ensure you sanitise all personal items that eventually end up in your baby’s mouth to prevent bacterial infection.
Just like you keep an eye out on your child’s physical growth, it is vital to ensure you consider their dental health too. Jaw problems, the development of new teeth, the position of existing teeth, and any trouble in chewing or swallowing are all part of this. If you have any concerns about your child’s oral health, contact us at Kamal Dental Clinic, a dental clinic in South Delhi.