Top Tips: Brushing IS for Babies!

 

  1. BRUSH: If you eat, BRUSH afterwards! Brush after every nursing/bottle/snack/meal. Say "AHHHH" to reach the tops and insides of the back teeth; say "EEEEE" to brush the front smile. Start in one spot and work around the curve-don't jump around or skip teeth. Brush off the tongue germs. Sing a silly song for as long as it takes to brush each tooth. Use 2 brushes-one for baby, one for grown-up. Grown-ups brush for kids until age 9! Grown-ups floss for kids-any teeth that touch side-by-side!
  2. CLEAN UP: Brush at the highchair, as part of cleaning up from meals. Stand behind your child so you are holding the brush like you do for yourself-same motion. Let your other arm cup the head in your elbow, holding jaw with your hand So much easier than pointing the brush from the front! Other positions: adult sitting on toilet with child sitting in your lap, facing away from adult. Be sure to instruct daycare, babysitters, grandparents, etc, in the importance of brushing and proper technique!
  3. WATER: Drink water, not juice. Juice (even 100% all-natural) is liquid sugar. Eat fresh fruit instead. No wandering around with bottles or sippy cups--eat sitting at the table.
  4. FIRST TOOTH, FIRST TOOTHBRUSH: Brushing IS for babies: as soon as there is a tooth, it needs to be brushed! Use a Xylitol infant tooth gel (no fluoride yet! See #9)
  5. NIGHT-TIME FEEDING: Nurse or bottle-feed babies when they wake up, not before sleeping. Babies that depend on nursing/bottle to get to sleep or feed at-will through the night are at high risk of nursing/baby-bottle decay once the teeth arrive (4-9 months old). Use a finger brush (like for dogs) with Xylitol gel after each feeding-especially at night.
  6. NO SUGAR: Avoid letting kids taste sweets for as long as possible (2+ years old), then limit sugar-filled snacks and drinks to "special occasions," not daily. Protects teeth AND prevents diabetes, a growing childhood epidemic. Once kids taste chocolate cake, they may ask for it every day. Just say "no"! (Or, at least, "only at birthday parties!!") Any simple carbohydrate = SUGAR -even "all-natural". Beware breakfast cereals-read the package. Avoid sticky foods (dried fruits). Avoid crackers/chips. No chocolate milk, Coke, Kool-Aid, Powerade. Avoid "grazing"-snacking at will throughout the day. Serve treats with a meal-not alone.
  7. BETTER THAN SUGAR: The natural sweetener Xylitol prevents cavities if used at least 5 times each day. Xylitol = less plaque, less acid, and less decay-causing bacteria in your mouth. Look for it in gum, mints, toothpaste, mouth-rinses, and granules for cooking and beverages.
  8. AWAY FROM HOME: Make sure your daycare and school support tooth-brushing and choose tooth-healthy snacks. We teach kids to wash their hands after using the potty; we can teach them to brush their teeth after eating food. And no juice-drink water! (See #2)
  9. USE FLUORIDE NOW FOR STRONGER ADULT TEETH: Create stronger adult teeth by using fluoride drops/tablets (starting at age 6 months through at least 12 years old) UNLESS you are drinking fluoridated water. Use just a pea-sized dab of fluoride and Xylitol toothpaste once kids are old enough to spit (around age 3 or 4), and rinse well with water (don't swallow or eat toothpaste).
  10. FIRST DENTAL VISIT: no later than the eruption of the first tooth, or the first birthday (American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, 1992). Urban myth #301: Kids first visit to the dentist should be around age 3. NO, NO, NO!. Healthy smiles start before baby is born, with good nutrition and dental care for mom, and good education for parents and caregivers about how to grow a cavity-free child. Good habits are easy to establish; bad habits are hard to change. It's never too soon to plan for a strong & healthy smile! Please call or email us with any questions on how to raise your child cavity-free. We are delighted to serve you!