Healthy teeth and gums are essential for a healthy body. From their first baby teeth to their adult teeth, you can help your children enjoy a lifetime of good oral health with proper care at home, a balanced diet and regular dental visits.

Prevent Tooth Decay

• Maintain a balanced diet for your child by selecting foods from the five main food groups—fruits, vegetables, meat, grains and dairy.
• Limit between-meal snacks. If your child needs a snack choose nutritious foods from the main food groups rather than cookies, candy and other sweets.
• Avoid soda and sweetened beverages and encourage your children to drink water.

Encourage Brushing & Flossing

• Brushing twice a day and flossing are necessary to maintain healthy teeth and gums.
• A pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste for children two and older is all that is needed.
• Make sure your child spits out the toothpaste rather than swallowing it.
• For young children, select a child-size toothbrush with soft bristles.
• Children should be able to brush alone by age seven.
• Replace toothbrushes every three to four months.
• Use floss as soon as the child has two teeth that touch.
• Ask your dentist or hygienist to demonstrate proper brushing and flossing techniques.
• Supervise your child’s brushing and flossing until you are satisfied they are doing both properly.

Make Dental Visits Enjoyable for Your Child & You

• Schedule the dental appointment for a time when your child feels rested and cooperative. Avoid nap and mealtimes if possible.
• Don’t let anyone tell your child scary stories about dental visits.
• Don’t let your child know if you feel any anxiety about going to the dentist.
• Don’t bribe your child to go to the appointment.
• Never use a dental visit as a punishment or threat.
• Do try to make your child’s dental visit an enjoyable outing.
• Set a good example by taking care of your oral hygiene and health.

 

Caring for Your Infants Teeth

First Smiles! First Teeth! First Steps! First Birthdays! All the "Firsts" Help your baby get off to a great start so they will benefit from a lifetime of "Healthy Beautiful Smiles".

• Begin cleaning your baby’s mouth during the first few days after birth. Wipe your baby’s gums with a clean gauze pad after each feeding to remove plaque and residual food that can harm erupting teeth.
• When your child’s teeth begin to erupt, brush them gently with a child’s size toothbrush and water (toothpaste is used for children two and older).
• Infants should not be nursed to sleep or given a bottle to take to bed. Formula, milk and juice contain sugars which when left on their teeth can cause tooth decay. Bedtime and naptime bottles should be followed with water. (see 'Baby Bottle Tooth Decay' below)
• If you use a pacifier, use a clean one. Never give a baby a pacifier dipped it in sugar. Generally, children will outgrow the use of pacifiers or thumb sucking before they become harmful, but be sure to mention this habit at their visit so we can monitor your child's growth. It is best to use an orthodontically correct pacifier.
• With your child’s first birthday, begin regular dental check-ups every six months to assure they will have "Healthy Beautiful Smiles for a Lifetime."

Baby Bottle Tooth Decay

What is Baby Bottle Tooth Decay?

Decay in infants and children is called baby bottle tooth decay. It can destroy the teeth and most often occurs in the upper front teeth. But other teeth may also be affected.

What causes 'Baby Bottle Tooth Decay?

As soon as a baby's first teeth appear—usually by age six months or so—the child is susceptible to decay. Decay occurs when sweetened liquids are given and are left clinging to an infant's teeth for long periods. Many sweet liquids cause problems, including milk, formula and fruit juice. Bacteria in the mouth use these sugars as food. They then produce acids that attack the teeth. Each time your child drinks these liquids, acids attack for 20 minutes or longer. After many attacks, the teeth can decay.

It's not just what you put in your child's bottle that causes decay, but how often — and for how long a time. Giving your child a bottle of sweetened liquid many times a day isn't a good idea. Allowing your child to fall asleep with a bottle during naps or at night can also harm the child's teeth.

How can 'Baby Bottle Tooth Decay' be prevented?

Sometimes parents do not realize that a baby's teeth can decay soon after they appear in the mouth. By the time decay is noticed, it may be too late to save the teeth. You can help prevent this from happening to your child by following the tips below:

1. After each feeding, wipe the baby's gums with a clean gauze pad. Begin brushing your child's teeth when the first tooth erupts. Clean and massage gums in areas that remain toothless, and begin flossing when all the baby teeth have erupted, usually by age 2 or 2½.
2. Never allow your child to fall asleep with a bottle containing milk, formula, fruit juice or sweetened liquids.
3. If your child needs a comforter between regular feedings, at night, or during naps, give the child a clean pacifier recommended by your dentist or physician. Never give your child a pacifier dipped in any sweet liquid.
4. Avoid filling your child's bottle with liquids such as sugar water and soft drinks.
5. If your local water supply does not contain fluoride (a substance that helps prevent tooth decay), ask your dentist how your child should get it.
6. Start dental visits by the child's first birthday. Make visits regularly. If you think your child has dental problems, take the child to the dentist as soon as possible.

Caring for Your Toddlers Teeth

This is the time to begin a lifetime of good habits. Brushing, a healthy diet and regular visits to the dentist will assure their smiles will last a lifetime!

According to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, by the time they reach kindergarten, over 40 percent of children already have one or more cavities. Risk factors include:

• not brushing well
• drinking too much juice and milk
• eating a lot of junk food
• not visiting a dentist regularly
• getting a bottle or cup at night

Brushing

Getting your child to brush their teeth everyday is a major accomplishment for both the child and the parent. A bad habit that children generally pick up is using too much toothpaste and swallowing a lot of it. This is actually a bad habit that is fairly easy to break. Try spending some time with the child explaining that a pea size drop of toothpaste is adequate and teach them how to brush and rinse and spit properly. After a few times, they will generally get the hang of it.

 

Choosing a Healthy Diet for your Children

Choosing the right foods in your diet is an important aspect in having healthy teeth and good oral hygiene. Establishing good nutritional habits in children can be especially beneficial for good eating patterns and food choices throughout their lives.

Choosing a healthy diet may sound easy, however, fruits, milk, cereals, bread and some vegetables contain sugars and or starches. Carbonated sodas, sweet fruit drinks and sugary snack foods should be limited. You don’t have to avoid these foods, just keep in mind that they should eat a balanced diet, brush their teeth twice a day, floss daily and have regular dental check-ups. Nutritional needs of children vary with age and sex. The USDA has provided a food pyramid which allows you to input the sex and age of your child to determine his or her average daily nutritional requirements, so that you can easily plan a healthy menu.

 

With your child’s first birthday,

begin regular dental check-ups every six months.

• Schedule the dental appointment for a time when your child feels rested and cooperative. Avoid nap and mealtimes if possible.
• Don’t let anyone tell your child scary stories about dental visits.
• Don’t let your child know if you feel any anxiety about going to the dentist.
• Don’t bribe your child to go to the appointment.
• Never use a dental visit as a punishment or threat.
• Do try to make your child’s dental visit an enjoyable outing.
• Set a good example by taking care of your oral hygiene and health.

 

 

Caring for Your Adolescents Teeth

Children who maintain good oral health habits up until the teen years are more likely to continue brushing and flossing than children who were not taught proper oral care. Evidence shows that periodontal disease may increase during adolescence due to lack of motivation to practice oral hygiene.

If your child currently has poor oral health habits, work with your child to change these now. It's much easier to modify these habits in a child than in an adult. Since your child models behavior after you, it follows that you should serve as a positive role model in your oral hygiene habits. A healthy smile, good breath and strong teeth all contribute to a young person's sense of personal appearance, as well as confidence and self-esteem.

 

Nutrition, Good Oral Hygiene, Regular Dental Visits and Early Detection

When your child eats or drinks sugars, the germs (bacteria) in your child's mouth mix with the sugars to make a mild acid. This acid attacks the hard outer layer of teeth (also called enamel). It can make holes (or cavities) in the teeth. The damage that sugars do depends on how much sugar goes into the mouth and how long it stays in the mouth.

Any kind of sugar will mix with germs in the mouth. Natural sugars can have the same effect on teeth as white (or refined) sugar out of the bag! Many healthy foods contain natural sugars, such as milk.

 

 

Growing children need and like snacks. Here are some smart ways to give snacks:

• Limit the number of times a day your child eats or drinks sugars. If your child sips juice or pop while playing, he or she will have sugars in the mouth over and over again. Water is the best drink to have between meals.
• Do not give your child sugar-rich foods that stay in the mouth for a long time like gum with sugar in it, suckers (or lollipops) and other hard candy. Stay away from soft, sticky sweets that get stuck in the mouth such as toffee, raisins and rolled-up fruit snacks.
• Keep good snacks handy where your child can get them. Have carrot sticks or cheese cubes on the bottom shelf of the fridge. Children like small things like small boxes of cereal, small fruits and vegetables, and small packs of nuts or seeds (provided they are safe for your child). Keep them in a low cupboard.
• To keep your child from asking for sweets, do not buy them. If they are not in the house, you can't give them out. If you do serve sweets, limit them to meals. When your child is eating a meal, there is more saliva in the mouth. This helps to wash away the sugars.
• The USDA has provided a food pyramid which allows you to input the sex and age of your child to determine his or her average daily nutritional requirements, so that you can easily plan a healthy menu.

Brushing and Flossing:

The following toothbrush and flossing techniques are recommended by dental hygienists. Brushing and Flossing should be done twice a day, everyday. Ask your dental hygienist to ensure that you are using a technique that meets your needs.

• Use a soft bristled brush (synthetic bristles preferably because natural bristles tend to harbor the oral bacteria as the bristles are more porous). Be sure it is the right size (generally smaller is better than larger).
• Place the bristles at a 45 degree angle to the teeth. Slide the tips of the brush under the gums.
• Jiggle the bristles very gently so that any plaque growing under the gum will be removed.
• Be sure to brush the outside, the tongue side and the chewing surfaces of your teeth.
• For the front teeth, brush the inside surfaces of the upper and lower jaws by tilting the brush vertically and making several up and down strokes with the front part of the brush over the teeth and gum tissues.
• Brushing your tongue will help freshen your breath. Debris and bacteria can collect on your tongue and cause bad breath.
• Wrap about 18 inches of floss around the middle fingers of your hands.
• Holding the floss tightly (use your thumbs and forefingers) gently guide the floss between your teeth. Never "snap" the floss as this can cut the gums.
• When the floss reaches the gumline, curve it into a C-shape against one tooth and gently slide it into the space between the gum and the tooth until you feel pressure against the tooth.
• Gently scrape the side of the tooth with the floss.
• Repeat this method on all your teeth.
• Move to a clean area of floss after one or two teeth.

If you have to miss a brushing, the bedtime one is probably the worst one to miss. If you don't get rid of the bacteria and sugar that cause cavities, they have all night to do harm. While you are awake, saliva helps keep the mouth clean. When you are asleep, there is less saliva produced to clean the mouth. For this reason it is important to brush before bedtime.

Regular Visits and Early Detection:

At this age regular dental visits are very important, in part because adolescents have a tendency to be less than vigorous about their oral hygiene. It is also a very important time developmentally due to accelerating facial and jaw growth and eruption of permanent teeth. Some orthodontic problems detected and treated at this age can mean the difference between an ideal and compromised orthodontic outcome. Permanent molars are coming in at this age, and early placement of sealants and regular applications of fluoride can help them to enjoy a lifetime of healthy, beautiful smiles.

 

Mouth Guards

Anyone who participates in a sport that carries a significant risk of injury should wear a mouth protector. This includes a wide range of sports like football, hockey, basketball, baseball, gymnastics, and volleyball. A properly fitted mouthguard can help prevent broken teeth and injuries to the lips, tongue, face or jaw. It will stay in place while you are wearing it, making it easy for you to talk and breath.

Mouth protectors, which typically cover the upper teeth, can cushion a blow to the face, minimizing the risk of broken teeth and injuries to the soft tissues of the mouth. If you wear braces or another fixed dental appliance on your lower jaw, your dentist may suggest a mouth protector for these teeth as well.

Custom-fitted mouth protectors are made by your dentist for you personally. They are more expensive than the other versions, such as ones you can purchase at your local drug store, but because they are customized they can offer a better fit which results in better protection.

 

Sealants

A dental sealant is a plastic coating applied to the chewing surfaces of back teeth. Grooves in these teeth are so narrow that a toothbrush cannot fit into the spaces to remove plaque. Dental sealants prevent dental decay in these grooves. Sealants can provide 100% protection from dental decay or "cavities" on the chewing surface.

Children should receive sealants on permanent molars as soon as they erupt between the ages of 6 and 12 years. While they may last up to 10 years, 2 to 4 years is a reasonable estimate. Sealants can be highly effective in protection against cavities provided the sealant is continuously monitored by the dentist. Sealants should be checked by your dentist during regular check ups and if needed they can be re-applied.

 

Helping Your Teenagers Care for Their Teeth

The best way teenagers can enjoy a beautiful smile and healthy teeth is to continue the good oral health habits they learned in early childhood. Unfortunately this is also the time when peer pressure and bad habits can have a negative influence on them. It is important that your teenagers, whether or not they wear braces, maintain good oral hygiene, eat healthy foods and avoid excessive sugars and starches and visit their dentist for regular dental check-ups. Be sure to talk (and talk and talk) to your kids about not smoking and discourage oral piercings.

 

Good Oral Hygiene, Preventative Care and a Healthy Diet

The lifestyle of the average teen often works against a healthy oral care plan.  For instance, the average 12 to 19 year-old male drinks approximately 868 cans of soft drinks a year. Sports drinks and juices are really no better and can damage teeth when consumed in large amounts. To combat these sugary drinks and the heavy snacking of many teens, encourage your child to carry a travel-size toothbrush, chew sugarfree gum and drink plenty of water throughout the day.  Stock your home with plenty of floss, toothpastes and teeth-healthy foods to encourage a family of healthy smiles.

Teenagers can be tough on their teeth. They may be so busy with school, jobs, athletics and social activities that it's difficult to find time to brush. They also tend to eat a lot of junk food. Combine the two and you've got a situation ripe for dental decay. Not surprisingly, this is the time when many children develop a lot of cavities. The USDA has provided a food pyramid which allows you to input the sex and age of your child to determine his or her average daily nutritional requirements, so that you can easily plan a healthy menu.

By the age of 13, most teenagers have 28 permanent teeth, with only the 3rd molars (wisdom teeth) left to come in. Encourage your child to take good care of his or her teeth. This means brushing and flossing at least twice a day. Teenagers care a lot about how they look. Help your child understand that bad oral hygiene contributes to teeth stains, bad breath, missing teeth and an assortment of other dental and health problems.

 

Smoking... if you don't - don't start, If you do - stop!

Although some studies show tobacco use among adolescents is decreasing, many smoking cessation experts still view tobacco use as a disorder of childhood and adolescence. "If a child gets to 18 years of age and hasn't started, it's unlikely he or she will ever be tobacco dependent," says Dr. Theresa Madden, a faculty member at the School of Dentistry of the Oregon Health Sciences University. She says prevention programs that can delay tobacco use for as long as possible have a great effect.

Children and teenagers who smoke cigarettes are nearly four times as likely to develop asthma in their teens as compared to their counterparts who do not smoke, according to new research from the University of Southern California.

Smoking and/or chewing tobacco increases your risk of oral cancer, periodontal disease, asthma and many other tobacco related diseases. If you do smoke, let your physician and dentist know and be sure to let them know about any mouth problems you may be having.

 

Oral Piercing

From hairstyles, to clothing, tattoos to jewelry, today's youth are making a fashion statement. But those that want to look cool with oral piercing may be looking to their dentists and physicians for help afterwards.

Common symptoms after oral piercing include pain, swelling, infection, an increased flow of saliva and injuries to the gum tissue. If a blood vessel was in the path of the needle during the piercing, severe and difficult-to-control bleeding can result. For some, chipped or cracked teeth, blood poisoning or even blood clots can occur. For many, the swelling of the tongue is a common side effect. And in extreme cases, a severely swollen tongue can actually close off the airway and prevent breathing.

Unfortunately, many young people with oral piercings don't realize that these alarming side effects could happen to them. So, skip the mouth jewelry and let your healthy smile make your fashion statement.

 

Braces and Good Oral Hygiene

There are certain steps everyone should perform daily to ensure a white smile and healthy teeth: brushing, flossing and eating healthy foods. Establishing an oral hygiene routine is critical when wearing braces, both in the morning and evening.

When wearing braces, the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) makes the following suggestions to help you and your child keep your braces and teeth as clean as they can be:

• Be sure to brush at least four times a day (after every meal and before bed).
• If you are away from home and unable to brush, try rinsing your mouth after eating.
• Brush until your teeth and braces are spotlessly clean at least once a day. This includes flossing!
• Don't forget to schedule cleanings twice a year (or more, if needed) with your general dentist. Patients often think seeing the orthodontist is enough, but that's not true. It's very important to visit your regular dentist for professional cleanings while wearing braces. Before having your teeth cleaned, your orthodontist can remove your wires, which helps the dentist clean your teeth more effectively.
• Wash the plaque away with a fluoride rinse. Rinsing allows the fluoride to penetrate all of the nooks and crannies created by braces and gets to the surface of the teeth.
• As always, eating healthy foods is a plus for great teeth. With braces, there are foods that should be avoided. Hard, sticky or chewy foods (popcorn, jellybeans, taffy, nuts, etc.) can cause damage to braces and lengthen the treatment time.