How to manage children’s teeth - Part 3

Trying to manage our teeth can be difficult and helping children manage their tooth brushing needs is an additional layer of difficulty to daily oral health routines. Yet, good habits are crucial to keeping children from having painful cavities. These good habits for kids start with seeing good habits from their caregivers. It is important to make sure your oral health is optimal and show kids that this is something that people do every day.  Kids see our good habits, so it is important to send the right message when it comes to how we maintain our mouth. Toothbrushing can become a chore, so make it fun and let them be involve in the process as well.  Here are some quick tips to remember when developing your child’s healthy habits.

Make it a routine. On busy days when life happens, toothbrushing may be the first thing that is missed in the daily routine.  Be sure this is something that occurs 2x a day.  If one of those times is skipped, be sure to do a thorough tooth brushing the next you’re brushing.

Remember to brush all the surfaces.  The tops of the teeth are pretty susceptible to cavities, so many people focus here; however, all the surfaces matter even along the gumline where the tooth meets the gum. 

Finding the best soft tooth brush and size will be necessary.  Soft bristles will be gentle on erupting teeth or wiggly teeth that are about to be exfoliated.  Making sure the brush isn’t too big for a child’s small mouth is also important.  You can even use a toothbrush that has more scrubbing action to help get into the grooves that are on the tops of the teeth. The TePe compact tuft brush is a perfect solution to cleaning the chewing surfaces. 

Cleaning between the teeth is so important as this is a natural place for cavities to start.  Once two teeth touch starts, good flossing habits is a brilliant idea.  This might not be easy with floss wrapped around your fingers.  Trying products like the TePe mini flossers to floss a child’s teeth may make this task much more manageable.  You can also use toothbrushes that have flossing style bristles like the TePe Supreme Compact brush.  Though flossing would be best, in a pinch, the tapered bristles of the Supreme Compact toothbrush can reach farther between the teeth and disrupt bacteria. 

Some children have larger spaces between their teeth, which is great for the future eruption of their adult teeth and make cleaning the sides of the teeth even easier.  The smaller interdental brushes can be used when there is adequate space between the teeth.  Be sure not to use these products if the teeth are touching and are too close together as this can cause trauma.  A tip is to use it yourself first, so you know how it feels before you use it on a child.

Time the process.  Adults are guilty of not brushing long enough.  A timer, playing their favorite song, and even downloaded apps are great ways to be sure you are brushing long enough.   Help prevent dental discomfort by developing good habits early.  Stay tuned for more tepe tips to develop good tooth cleaning habits at home; for you and your child.