…toothbrushing? Child Play!!

…toothbrushing? Child Play!!

9 August 2019

i there, I hope you are all enjoying your summer holidays! And the children are having fun and enjoying the freedom of being away from school, perhaps a later bedtime? A little more screen time? More fun out in the sun? Ice cream? Meeting friends?

As parents, we are responsible for all aspects of our children’s health and wellbeing, however this can be challenging for a number of reasons and trying to decide the best way to tackle these issues can be confusing. Starting out right with a good routine for oral hygiene is so important to reduce the likelihood of Dental Disease in the future.

The best time to start this routine is when your child is a baby. Give them a soft baby toothbrush and let them explore it and put it in their mouth, bath time is a great time to do this. Every morning and night from the moment their first tooth erupts it is important to brush their tooth. This starts from around 6 months and will get them used to you brushing daily and as they grow this will just be a part of their routine. As they get bigger and more teeth erupt you can use a chart to show them which tooth has come through and they can get excited each time a new one appears. It is important to talk to them about what you are doing and why as this will help their understanding. It is always good to let them have a go at brushing as well (“you have a go first and Mummy will finish it off”) this encourages them to take a bit of responsibility for their mouth. Use a mirror and get them to look in the mirror and count their teeth and look to see if they are clean. If using a manual toothbrush try to find one with a small head as it will give better access to a little mouth. Brush in a circular motion aiming into the gums overlapping the teeth and gums, counting “1,2” for each tooth before moving on. Make sure you brush the inside, outside and the biting surfaces. For an electric toothbrush, aim the bristles in towards the gums making sure you overlap the gum and the tooth and again count “1,2” before moving on.

There are apps which are designed to help encourage brushing in children for the correct amount of time. They have characters and you can build rewards for your character each time you brush. There are also many different toothbrushes. I tend to recommend manual brushes until they are old enough and responsible enough for an electric toothbrush (age varies). There are many out on the market, some which flash for the brushing time and some that play music at the start and the finish to let you know when you’ve brushed for long enough. The main point I would make about tooth brushes is the smaller the better. If your child is using a large headed tooth brush it is very difficult to access all the areas of the mouth needed whereas a small head will get in and around the mouth in a much more efficient way.

Disclosing tablets or buds are a great help as they will stain the plaque blue or pink and then you can easily see where your child is missing. This can really motivate the child as there can be a reward if they improve and manage to remove all the plaque. We also now stock toothpaste with a disclosing element which is activated with a light, these leave no pink marks on the teeth or gums so you can head straight out afterwards.

Taking your child to the Dentist regularly and asking them to have a look from a very young age helps to build their confidence that the Dental Practice is a fun place to go. They can start with a ride in the chair and watching you have a check-up and soon they will have the confidence to sit in the chair and let the Dentist have a look.

Catch you all soon!

Jo