Prioritising your child’s dental care is vital for maintaining the appearance and health of their adult teeth. Although many parents do not believe that milk teeth are important to a child’s dental care, the health of a child’s milk teeth can drastically affect their adult teeth, which they will have for the rest of their lives. However, looking after a child’s teeth is different from looking after your own.
When should you start looking after a baby’s teeth?
There is no age at which you should start to look after your baby’s teeth. You should begin brushing your baby’s teeth as soon as they begin to teethe and their first milk tooth grows above the gum line. Before your child’s teeth grow, you should clean their gums with a wet, damp cloth to get them used to the sensation of brushing. When your child is two years old, you can brush with toothpaste, using a small, pea-sized amount. You should sit your baby on the floor or a bed, and cup your baby’s face towards you in order to brush effectively.
What happens to a 5-8-year-olds teeth?
Your child should brush their teeth twice a day with a pea-sized amount of toothpaste as a toddler, and you should supervise this routine until they are at least 8 years old to check that they are brushing their teeth correctly. When your child reaches 6 years old, they can start to use adult fluoride toothpaste, which has a greater effect on maintaining the health of their teeth.
At this age, you should also be visiting the dentist on a regular basis. This will help to get your child used to the dental surgery and will allow a professional to check for symptoms of decay that you cannot see with the naked eye. They will also have all the appropriate equipment that your child needs, such as tooth polishers and dental brushes from dental suppliers such as Kent Express, which can prevent decay.
What care does a 9-12-year-old’s teeth need?
When your child is of school age, they should be starting to floss their teeth on a daily basis. This covers more of the mouth than brushing and enables you to remove any excess bacteria that can build up between the teeth. You can either use floss or dental brushes to achieve this effect.
You should also limit your children’s sugar intake at this age, ensuring that they eat a low amount of sugary snacks such as chocolate which can potentially damage the teeth. You should also ensure this is balanced with foods that are good for their teeth, such as cheese and crunchy vegetables which can brush off leftover food from the teeth.
What changes when they become teenagers?
Although teenagers will be independent by this age, you should look for dental issues that they may be having, with the most common of these being the need for braces. Having braces is common in teenage years and can be used to fix cosmetic and medical issues such as overbites, wonky teeth, and a lack of space in the mouth.