Playbook for Your Child’s Oral Health

It is essential to take care of your child’s oral health. Teaching your child proper oral hygiene will ensure a long healthy dental experience even in their adult life. This is why teaching brushing and flossing techniques are vital to ensure no plaque buildup in your toddler’s teeth.

In addition, teaching your kid the foods that are healthy and harmful to their oral health will ensure they steer away from cakes, sweets, and ice creams, which have detrimental effects on their teeth.

Let us help you maintain your child’s oral health.

The Importance of Oral Health

Tooth decay is rampant among kids. This is because kids do not know how to brush their teeth well and stay away from foods that can affect their teeth. This implies that it is essential to help your kid with oral health to ensure their teeth are free from cavities and decay.

Oral health can affect a child’s overall health. For example, when your child’s teeth are affected by poor oral hygiene, it can affect the child’s eating habits and growth. For instance, if your child has a decayed tooth, there can be pain, making it difficult for them to feed well.

Other than affecting the kid’s overall health. Poor dental health can influence the kid’s esteem, social life, and performance of daily activities. For example, tooth decay can lead to early tooth loss, and other kids can make fun of the kid missing a tooth leading to stress and low self-esteem. Therefore, good oral health is vital to a kid’s growth and social life.

Research has shown that poor oral hygiene affects academic performance. For example, a kid with poor oral hygiene can miss classes as they require regular dental visits to the pediatric dentist in Modesto to treat the dental issue. This will lead to lower grades as the kid misses some classes.

There are chronic medical conditions that are associated with bad oral health. Some of the chronic medical conditions include stroke and diabetes. On top of that, gum disease has a higher correlation with cardiovascular disease. Therefore, teaching your child how to take care of their teeth is essential.

Tips for Brushing and Flossing Teeth

Buying a toothbrush and dental floss is insufficient to ensure their oral health is top-notch. Therefore, it is imperative to teach them the proper technique for flossing and brushing their teeth.

First, you should tell your kid that a pea-sized amount of toothpaste is enough to get the job done. After that, it is essential to tell them to brush each tooth’s front, top and back sides in a circular motion.

It is also important to show your kid how to brush their tongue and roof the mouth. Of course, the last thing is spitting the toothpaste and rinsing their mouth well.

There are two types of dental floss, and you should ensure your kid is conversant with using either.

For a traditional dental floss, show the kid how to use the floss to pick the debris found deep between teeth.

However, a floss pick is recommended as it is easier for a child to use than the typical dental floss.

Foods to Avoid for Healthy Teeth

Dentists recommend that sugary foods are not suitable for teeth: whether in kids or adults. For example, sweets and candies can stick to your teeth and be hard to remove with a toothbrush. This can cause tooth decay if left there for a long time.

Kids love ice cream, but it is not suitable for their teeth. This is because it can damage the enamel and weaken their teeth. This leads to tooth sensitivity and loose teeth.

Potato chips have a lot of starch. This starch becomes sugar and can get trapped between teeth, leading to plaque buildup and plaque-causing tooth decay.

Routine Pediatric Dental Checkups

The pediatric dentist recommends that you should take your child for regular pediatric dentistry services at least once every six months. The services that the dentist offers include professional dental cleaning, x-rays, fluoride treatment, and a dental exam to evaluate the condition of your toddler’s teeth.

However, if you desire to build comfort and confidence in your child, taking them to 123 iSmile every three months will help achieve that.