Dental News

Good Oral Dental Hygiene for Young Children

May 17, 2019

Good Oral Dental Hygiene for Young Children

Establishing good oral dental hygiene early in young children is a good practice to keep your child healthy. Many parents may think that those baby teeth will fall out anyway and some parents may not pay much attention to those little teeth. However, this is not entirely true; tooth decay can negatively impact the health of your child. For example, dental disease such as early childhood caries can affect permanent teeth. Proper and routine oral dental hygiene practice in young children will prevent or reduce the chances of cavities from forming on teeth, prevent gum disease, and keeps your child teeth healthy so that they can eat a well-balanced diet.

Teaching good habit will promote good oral hygiene

An effective way to get your child to practice good oral hygiene is by setting good examples and teaching proper brushing routines. Let them pick their toothbrush and let them put their toothpaste on their brushes. It’s also helpful to show them how to rinse and spit with water before trying with toothpaste. You should coach and brush your teeth alongside your child to keep them engaged and curious. This will help reinforce routine practice and demonstrating proper brushing motions. You will still need to supervise young children to help them brush until your child can brush on their own.

Tooth brushing for young children

As important as teaching brushing routines, it is equally important to use the right toothbrush size and brushing the teeth surfaces. A toothbrush size appropriately for your child makes it more comfortable for them to brush. An appropriate toothbrush size makes it easy for your child to reach deep behind the molar teeth and areas that an adult size toothbrush cannot. The brushing motion is good practice, but for children, the most critical objective is to clean the top, bottom, and front surfaces of their teeth. As soon as your child turns two, your child should brush twice daily with fluoride toothpaste made for children. However, if your child cannot brush or don’t thoroughly brush their teeth, you can help them brush until they can independently brush.

Reduce sugary drinks and foods

Even with proper brushing practices, kids who eat and drink sugary foods are at higher risk of developing cavities. Especially foods that are very sticky such as taffy candies, gum, or dried fruits that can stick to the teeth. The sugars from these foods will attract bacteria, and if left in the mouth for long periods the bacteria can produce acids that breakdown the teeth. Limiting your child’s sugary food consumption and brushing will help keep cavities away.

To keep your child’s teeth healthy schedule a yearly dental check-up and cleaning. Be sure to contact California Dental Group at (800) 407-0161 for your appointment.

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