Beautiful mother and daughter brushing teeth together
Defend Your Child From Tooth Decay With These 5 Easy Tips!
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Children love to gorge on junk food, such as candies and chocolates that make them susceptible to cavities. The bacterial build-up is not an adult oral problem. It can also affect kids and lead to tooth ailments that need expert attention of Hope Island dentist for treatment.

It is not easy to avoid the problem in children these days as most parents give in to their public meltdowns and tantrums so that they get to eat sugar-coated products. Many parents offer such foods without any requests to keep the kids busy while they are working or driving and don’t need interference.

However, it is a bad practice as tooth decay can cost your money, cause anxiety and lead to painful results. Thus you must work on defending your children’s teeth with these simple oral health and hygiene tips.

1. Encourage Proper Brushing Habits

Teaching personal hygiene should start from a young age, and you must not waste time in developing the habit of proper oral care. Make sure your kids brush their teeth twice daily with a brush that is appropriate for their age and has soft bristles.

Teach them the correct angle of stroking, which is at 45-degree to the gums. They should clean both the inner surface of the teeth and the outer surface with gentle back and forth strokes. The toothbrush must be changed after every 2-3 months or when its bristles become worn.

The toothpaste should be fluoride-based and teach them to floss after brushing. You must supervise them until they reach the age of 11 so that they don’t rush through the process and follow all the guidelines. Kids who are above three years should use toothpaste only of the size of a pea and should start spitting while brushing. 

2.  Reduce the Intake of Sugary Foods

Junk food is not only bad for the overall health of your kids but also their teeth. Do not let snacks become a part of their daily routine and help them to maintain healthy eating habits. Avoid packed juices and soda as they are nothing but sugar syrups laden with preservatives.

Give them fresh homemade juices and fruits instead of jellies and cream biscuits for snacking. Make them eat whole foods rather than processed and canned food as far as possible. Include colourful veggies and fruits in breakfast and lunch and make it exciting and fun by making a fruit salad of their favourite fruits.

The idea is to avoid junk and include wholesome and nutritious foods in their diet that keep them energised and fit. Also, ask them not to share the same fruit or drink with other kids at school as bacteria can get passed on from one to another through food. They can pass the whole piece to their friend if they want to share.

3. Visit The Dentist Regularly

Kids should start visiting a dentist as soon as they complete one year. The practitioner will inform you about the cleaning of the gums, which should begin even before teething. For babies, you must utilise a damp cotton swab to clean the gums as the formula milk deposits can get stuck on the gums.

When the first teeth appear, you must start brushing them gently using baby brush and fluoride toothpaste. The amount of toothpaste should be the size of a grain of rice. You can begin flossing their teeth when the teeth join each other, and there is a little gap between them.

Make sure that they do not swallow the toothpaste and teach them to spit. A visit to the dentist will help in determining any signs of tooth decay so that proper care can be taken and the problem can be nipped in the bud.

Dentists use a variety of procedures such as happy gas sedation to make kids comfortable throughout these processes. Thus they should not be afraid to visit them.

4. Make them Have Plenty of Water

Drinking lots of fluoridated tap water is an exceptional way of keeping the cavities at bay. Water helps in flushing away the bacteria build-up in the mouth. The growth of excessive bacteria in the mouth starts to eat up the tooth enamel, which protects our teeth.

These bacteria produce acids in the mouth which cause tooth decay. Water helps in removing them from the mouth. It also helps in removing the sugar deposits from the mouth so that they do not lead to cavities.

Also, make sure that you give washed and clean utensils for drinking water, and they should not have been used by adults as bacteria can get passed on from adults into children. Do not taste their juices before giving them.

5.  Dental Sealants To Avoid Cavities

Paediatric dentists recommend using dental sealants in kids aged between 6 and 12 years. These are placed on permanent molars which appear in this age group. The sealants are made up of plastic and cover the fissures and cracks in teeth to avoid the build-up of bacteria in these gaps.

They do not allow the food to get deposited in the cracks and lead to cavities. Also, kids might not be able to reach the molars with their brushes, so the sealants help in a lot of ways and are commonly recommended as a preventive dentistry measure.

Conclusion

If you are concerned about the oral health of your children, then you must adhere to the tips mentioned above and visit a dentist in Hope Island immediately in case of a toothache or cavity.