Some Tips For Parents
Tips From Dr. King
Tooth Brushing & Flossing Help
Children’s hands and mouths are different than adults. They need to use toothbrushes designed for children. Both adults and children should use brushes with soft, rounded bristles for gentle cleaning. Change to a new brush about every three months.
Wipe infant’s teeth gently with a moist, soft cloth or gauze square. As babies grow, use a child’s toothbrush with a small, rice-grain sized smear of toothpaste. By age two or three begin to teach your child to brush. You will still need to brush where they miss. Dentists and hygienists often advise children to use a gentle, short, back and forth motion to remove plaque. When children are older, they can switch to this method.
Hold the brush at a 45 degrees angle towards teeth and gums. Move the brush in small circles with short strokes, about a half tooth wide.
Brush the inside and outside surfaces of each tooth, top and bottom.
Hold the brush flat on top of the teeth and brush the chewing surfaces.
Gently brush the tongue to remove debris.
Floss between teeth daily.
When To Begin Brushing
Once your child’s teeth begin erupting, you can begin cleaning them by wiping them with a moist washcloth. As your child gets more teeth, you can begin to use a soft child’s toothbrush. You should use a rice-grain sized smear amount of toothpaste until your child is able to properly spit.
For most toddlers, getting them to brush their teeth can be quite a challenge. Some suggestions for making tooth brushing less of a battle can include:
Let your child brush your teeth at the same time.
Let your child pick out a few toothbrushes with his favorite characters and giving him a choice of which one he wants to use each time (this will give him some feeling of control over the situation).
Let your child brush his own teeth first (you will likely have to “help out”).
Read your child some children’s books about tooth brushing.
Have everyone brush their teeth at the same time.
To help your child understand the importance of brushing, it can be fun and helpful to let them use disclosing tablets that will “stain“ their plaque temporarily and then allow them to brush the stained plaque away, learning the importance of brushing techniques.
It can also be a good idea to create a “tooth brushing routine”. And stick to the same routine each day.
Thumb, Finger, & Pacifier Habits
Do not be overly concerned if your child is very young, and still sucking on his or her fingers or thumbs. Children will typically stop this behavior all by themselves. If your child continues to suck on his or her fingers or thumbs after three years old, Dr. King might recommend a mouth appliance that prevents the behavior.
Prolonged behavior of this type can cause teeth to grow out improperly or in a deformed direction toward the lip, causing language and eating problems.
Tooth Eruption
The first baby teeth come into the mouth are the two bottom front teeth. You will notice this when your baby is about six to eight months old. Next to follow will be the four upper front teeth and the remainder of your baby’s teeth will appear periodically. They will usually appear in pairs along the sides of the jaw until the child is about 2-1/2 years old.
At around 2-1/2 years old, your child should have all 20 teeth. Between the ages of five and six, the first permanent teeth will begin to erupt. Some of the permanent teeth replace baby teeth and some don’t. Don’t worry if some teeth are a few months early or late as all children are different.
Baby teeth are important as they not only hold space for permanent teeth, but they are important to chewing, biting, speech, and appearance.
For this reason it is important to maintain a healthy diet and daily hygiene.
Early Childhood Tooth Decay
What Causes Tooth Decay?
Several specific types of bacteria that live on the teeth cause decay. When sugar is consumed, the bacteria use the sugar and then manufacture acids that dissolve the teeth and cause an infection in the tooth. This infection is called decay.
What Is Early Childhood Tooth Decay?
Babies who go to bed with a bottle of milk, formula, or juice are more likely to get tooth decay. Because the sugar in formula, milk, or juice stays in contact with the teeth for a long time during the night, the teeth can decay quickly.
Some Tips To Avoid Early Childhood Tooth Decay
Put your child to bed with a bottle of plain water, not milk or juice.
Stop nursing when your child is asleep or has stopped sucking on the bottle.
Try not to let your child walk around using a bottle of milk or juice as a pacifier.
Start to teach your child to drink from a cup at about six months of age. Plan to stop using a bottle by 12 to 14 months at the latest.
Don’t dip your child’s pacifier in honey or sugar.
What is Flouride?
Fluoride helps make teeth strong and prevents tooth decay. If the water where you live does not have enough fluoride, your doctor may prescribe fluoride supplements (fluoride drops or pills). You would give these drops or pills every day, starting when your child is about six months old. Only give as much as the directions say to use because too much fluoride can cause spots on your child’s teeth. Also, be sure to call your local water authority and ask if your water is fluoridated. If it is, tell your dentist or pediatrician so that your child is not being over fluoridated. Children should take these drops or pills until they are 12 to 16 years old (or until you move to an area with fluoride in the water).
Cavity Prevention
Most of the time cavities are due to a diet high in sugary foods and a lack of brushing.
Limiting sugar intake and brushing regularly, of course, can help. The longer it takes your child to chew their food, the longer the residue stays on their teeth and the greater the chances of getting cavities.
Every time someone eats, an acid reaction occurs inside their mouth as the bacteria digests the sugars. This reaction lasts approximately 20 minutes. During this time the acid environment can destroy the tooth structure, eventually leading to cavities.
Consistency of a person’s saliva also makes a difference as thinner saliva breaks up and washes away food more quickly. When a person eats diets high in carbohydrates and sugars, they tend to have thicker saliva, which in turn produces more of the acid-producing bacteria that causes cavities.
Some tips for cavity prevention:
Limit frequency of meals and snacks.
Encourage brushing, flossing, and rinsing.
Limit sugary drinks such as Gatorade, and sports drinks.
Avoid sticky foods.
Make treats part of meals.
Choose nutritious snacks.
Drink water regularly.
“Our family cannot say enough great things about Dr. King …
“Our family cannot say enough great things about Dr. King and his staff. When our son was 2 years old his front four teeth were decaying. We were told by two other pediatric dentists that we needed to have those teeth pulled. As parents to a two year old we did not want our son to go without his front teeth for years. We decided to try another pediatric dentist, Dr. King. He told us he could save our son’s teeth. Dr. King was able to cap those front four teeth. Now 9 years later we continue to drive the hour drive from Lake County to have Dr. King take care of our son. We trust Dr. King completely.”
-Becky, Oviedo
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