One of the most efficient ways to keep your child healthy is by taking care of their dental hygiene. With dental hygiene comes dental health with a gorgeous smile that boosts a child’s confidence. The teeth get stronger, allowing your child to consume different foods for better growth and development.
As a passionate parent or guardian, you are probably wondering how to ensure that your child’s teeth are clean. We have all the dental hygiene hacks for you here. You can start by booking an appointment with a professional orthodontist at https://myhborthodontist.com/.
Below are some ways to ensure your child has proper dental hygiene.
Understanding A Child’s Teeth
Instilling dental hygiene discipline in your child from a young age ensures they grow to be healthy both physically and psychologically. It is, therefore, important to start taking care of their teeth as early as possible.
In general, baby teeth start to appear between 4 and 7 months old. The two bottom front teeth are typically the first to erupt. Most children have all 20 baby teeth by the time they are three years old.
By the time your child is three years old, they are likely to have a full set of primary teeth. When your baby is around the age of six, these teeth will begin to fall out one after the other. A different set of teeth (permanent) will grow to replace the primary ones.
Baby teeth might fall out between the ages of 6 and 12, depending on the child. Your child’s teeth change during this process when baby teeth fall out and adult teeth erupt. Your dentist might discuss potential dental issues with you and your child at this time. Some children require orthodontic care, such as braces. There are 32 teeth in an adult’s complete set. The majority of people do not typically receive their wisdom teeth until they are in their late teens or early adulthood.
During this transition, you will occasionally notice a few gaps in the child’s mouth. These gaps should not alarm you since they are normal to allow the growth of the permanent teeth.
This transition period is the prime time for children’s dental hygiene since they tend to try out eating different things.
Flouride’s Task
The dental health of your child depends on fluoride. It has been shown to lessen cavities in both adult (permanent) teeth and baby (primary) teeth. By hardening the tooth enamel, it also aids in strengthening teeth. Fluoride is typically consumed by kids through water. Fluoride must be added to tap water in several cities. Fluoride is not removed by water filters, thus they are safe to use. Use of “reverse osmosis” water filters is not advised.
Your child might need to take an oral fluoride supplement if the water in your home lacks fluoride. To find out if your child requires this, consult your doctor. Your youngster will receive a fluoride varnish or cleaning once they begin visiting the dentist.
Too much fluoride can affect your child’s health and discolor their teeth. Make sure your child does not consume fluoride-containing mouthwash or toothpaste. Observe all fluoride supplement instructions.
The Path To Improved Dental Health
Having understood the basics about children’s teeth, it is time to create a path to their overall dental health. The first step is maintaining proper hygiene by:
Flossing
Your child needs special attention when it comes to cleaning the teeth. Since the whole set is not yet developed, you begin by flossing. You can decide to use the finger-wrap method or the loop method.
In the first method, it is important to look for soft dental floss that will be comfortable in your baby’s mouth. The goal here is to avoid hurting your baby. Here is how you go about flossing:
- Ensure that you clean your hands so that you do not transfer any contaminants into your baby’s mouth.
- From the dental floss, cut a piece that is about twenty inches long. This will give you enough allowance for holding.
- Use your middle fingers to wrap floss without tightening it. This will ensure your child’s developing gums are safe.
- Make up and down movements using the index fingers with the floss between your baby’s teeth. However, if you move the floss from one side to the other, you will torture the child.
- Finally, make sure you floss below your baby’s gum line.
If you’re a parent that prefers the loop method, you will have to be more careful. Just like in the finger-wrap method, you will need a soft floss.
- Once you have cut a piece that is around 20 inches long, tie both ends to form a circle.
- When the loop is complete, you will need to place your fingers in the loop with your thumbs facing upwards.
- Now floss your child’s lower teeth by moving the piece of floss with your index fingers.
- For the upper teeth, maintain the same setup and use your thumbs instead to guide the floss.
- Bend your floss and clean the gum line.
Brushing the Child’s Teeth Atleast Twice in A Day
Once the child has developed enough teeth for brushing, allowing them to pick a brush they love is one way you make your children happy. This will make the brushing period fun for the children encouraging them to brush often.
Once the child has had breakfast, please encourage them to brush their teeth. Similarly, make sure your child brushes their teeth in the evening before going to bed.
The ideal brushing motion may be suggested in a variety of ways, including up and down, back and forth, and in circles. However, the direction of the brushing is not actually important. It’s crucial to carefully clean each tooth on the top, bottom, inside, and out. Here is when you will run into resistance from your youngster, who will likely just focus on the front teeth that he can see. A youngster cannot brush his teeth without aid until he is older—about six to eight years old—so it may be helpful to make it into a game of “find the hidden teeth.” Therefore make sure to keep an eye on them or, if necessary, conduct the actual brushing on them yourself.
Include All Teeth
As children learn different things, they look for shortcuts. For this reason, if your child is not yet used to brushing, make sure they brush all the teeth. Monitor the child to make sure they don’t just brush the front teeth.
Type Of Toothbrush
Since the child’s gums are in the developmental stage, it would help if you use a soft toothbrush. Preferably, buy a toothbrush that has a soft handle and, most importantly, soft bristles.
Amount of Toothpaste
You can begin using fluoride toothpaste, which helps prevent cavities, as early as age 3. Try a different flavor of toothpaste if your kid doesn’t like the taste. Even though they are frequently still too young to learn to rinse and spit at this age, try to teach your child not to consume it. Too much fluoride in toothpaste might cause brown or white spots to form on your child’s adult teeth.
Check that Diet
Besides regular toothbrushing with the right amount of fluoride toothpaste, your child’s diet will play a key role in his dental health. And, of course, sugar is the big villain.
Youngsters who consume a lot of sweet foods and beverages also have a higher chance of developing cavities. It’s crucial to choose nutritious foods. Limit your intake of sugar.
Foods that contain “sticky sugar,” such as sticky caramel, toffee, gum, and dried fruit, can harm your teeth if they remain in your mouth for a long period of time. Avoid giving your child any sugar-containing liquid in a sippy cup for an extended period of time. Always remember to brush your child’s teeth after giving them a sweet treat.
Limit the amount of soda, fruit juice, and other sugary beverages your child consumes. Avoid eating or drinking anything sweet between meals. Make sure your child brushes their teeth right away if they do consume sweets.
Teach Good Dental Habits
Teaching your child appropriate dental habits is the best approach to protect his or her teeth. He will soon incorporate good dental hygiene into his everyday routine with the right coaching. He might be a willing participant, but he won’t have the self-control or focus to do his own teeth-brushing just yet. You’ll need to watch over him and assist him to ensure that the brush gets rid of all the plaque—the soft, sticky deposits that carry germs that build up on teeth and result in tooth decay. Watch out for any regions with brown or white spots, since these could be indications of impending degradation.
Mouth protection
Another important aspect of oral hygiene is safety. Your youngster should wear a mouth guard if they participate in sports. This soft plastic retainer covers the lips and occasionally the teeth. It aids in preventing harm to your child’s mouth. If you require a mouth guard that is specially fitted, consult your dentist.
Dentist’s Appointments
After you have done all you can to maintain proper dental hygiene, the next stage is booking appointments with a dentist. The dentist will evaluate the child’s dental development and make necessary recommendations.
Contact your dentist right away if: your child has tooth pain or a tooth or mouth infection or your child loses a permanent tooth. If you find the tooth, put it in milk and take it to the dentist with you. They may be able to reattach it.
When a child turns one, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) advises taking them to the dentist. This provides the dentist a chance to check your child’s teeth for potential early issues. Pediatric dentists are specialists in the care of young patients’ teeth. Your dentist will discuss good dental hygiene with you.
Your youngster will feel more at ease if they visit the dentist early on. Additionally, it instills the value of routine dental examinations. Everybody needs to visit the dentist twice per year.
Parting Shot
Many parents believe that since baby teeth are going to be gone anyway, cavities in them don’t matter. Yet, that is untrue. Dental decay in infant teeth can harm permanent teeth and cause dental issues in the future.
Maintaining your child’s dental health is easy if you follow the guidelines in this article. Make sure your child has brushed their teeth at least twice a day. Additionally, choose a dentist that your child is comfortable around.
If you apply the above information, there is no doubt that your child will be all smiles! And if you are interested in the field of dentistry, make sure to read these top things to consider when starting your dental practice first.