Teaching kids to look after their teeth
Guest Blog: Jessica Fishbein, MA | AboutKidsHealth
April is Oral Health Month, making it the perfect time to “brush up” on how to care for your teeth. All parents know that dental care is important, but it’s not always easy to get kids on board with brushing and flossing — particularly for extended periods of time. How do you convince your child that their teeth are worth the effort?
Here are a few reasons why taking care of your teeth is so important. Make sure to visit AboutKidsHealth for more “Tooth Truths” — in a kid-friendly, illustrated format!
Avoid cavities and decay
Once you start eating, bacteria in your mouth is already working to turn those pesky pieces of leftover food into acid — yuck! Acid will make holes in your teeth if it’s not washed out.
It’s not always possible to brush teeth after every meal, but try to get your child to rinse their mouth with water. You can even make this a part of your family’s mealtime routine: just as you wash your hands before eating, you wash your mouth after eating. By the time your child is three, they should be brushing their teeth twice a day for two minutes each time.
April is Oral Health Month.
Did you know that teeth are part of our skeleton — and the only part we can actually see? When we eat foods that make our bones grow, we are also taking good care of our teeth. Drinking and eating foods that contain calcium and vitamin D will build strong bones, and help your teeth become strong and healthy.
Prepare for big-kid teeth
Around age six or seven, children’s baby teeth fall out and are replaced with adult teeth (around 32 of them!). It’s important to set the stage for our future teeth by taking good care of our baby ones: after all, these still help us learn how to speak and eat, and reserve space for where future teeth will grow in.
Help teeth do their job!
Your child will be more motivated to look after their teeth if they understand that each one has a job to do. Go over the basics of what each type of tooth does: incisors are built for biting and cutting, canines are for ripping food, and molars are for grinding food. Visit our “Get to Know Your Teeth” page to see what these teeth look like.
Cleaning those hard-to-reach places
We don’t just need to clean the outer surfaces of our teeth — we need to work our way into the nooks and crannies, too! Brushing doesn’t always cut it when we’re trying to get to the narrow slots in between our teeth. When your child’s teeth are big enough that they start touching, it’s time to incorporate flossing into their dental care routine.
Visits to the dentist will help you clean even harder to reach places that you couldn’t get to with brushing and flossing. Dentists will also teach you how to up your game and clean certain areas you might have missed. By listening to your dentist’s advice, your child can work to avoid getting a cavity as they get older.
Want to learn more about oral health? Visit AboutKidsHealth for more in-depth information on dental care for children.
