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    Dental care for kids

    11 Feb 2019 4:58 PM | Posted by
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    bh's Ellie Goodman
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    As an adult, you know your teeth and gum health is important. In fact, we’d hazard a guess that your daily dental habits are impeccable. But kids? We’d bet that they’re doing a half-hearted brush for under two minutes – on a good day. It can be so hard to ensure your child is brushing properly at all and then possibly even harder to motivate them to do so twice a day for two whole minutes.

    That’s why we’ve spoken with Dentist, Dr Gizelle Kaunitz about her best tips for encouraging good dental habits for kids. She’s explained everything you need to know about dental care for kids...including, tips and tricks for teaching them good habits from the get-go.

    RELATED: 5 ways to encourage kids to brush their teeth

    RELATED: How to overcome dental anxiety

    The ideal dental routine

    Let’s start with the basics. If they’re old enough, your children should be brushing their own teeth, says Dr Kaunitz. “Otherwise, an adult should brush or at least supervise the routine, once or twice per day,” she advises. “The easiest way to make sure that the brushing is effective is to seat the child in a low back armchair and tip the head back with an overhead light nearby.”

    Children should also be going to the dentist every six months for a clean and check-up. “The dentist checks for decay, effective brushing, dental erosion, bite interference and other problems and monitors the possible orthodontic intervention that may become apparent as the jaws develop and grow,” explains Dr Kaunitz.

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    Eating and drinking for dental health

    Instead of snacking all day, it’s better for children to eat a number of solid meals, Dr Kaunitz says. Solid foods like bread crusts are especially good for helping with jaw development. “Food should be served whole so the child can chew the food and start digestion in the oral cavity where saliva is developed and starts digesting the food as well as protects the teeth and gums,” she says. “Fresh fruit, vegetables, protein and good fats are good for dental health as well as general wellbeing,” she says.

    In terms of what shouldn’t be in your child’s diet, Dr Kaunitz says to avoid fruit juice because of its acidity (which can cause erosion that’s difficult to repair), soft drinks, cordial and fruit bars (which are high in sugar, sticky and leave a film on teeth that encourages bacterial growth).

    Leading by example

    As a parent, you should be leading by example and putting dental hygiene habits high on the priority list. “Always leave time to brush children’s teeth, try not to rush this so the process is relaxed and pleasant,” Dr Kauntiz says.

    Your personal perception (read: hang-ups) about the dentist is also setting an example for your child. So, if you’re terrified of your own dental check-ups? Don’t let it show, but also don’t overcorrect. “When making a dental appointment, for [your]self or [your] children, never imply that the visit will be painful by say[ing], ‘The dentist won’t hurt, don’t worry you will be fine,’” explains Dr Kaunitz. “This to a child means that the dental treatment does hurt. Don’t say to children that you, as an adult, dislike and avoid going for dental visits because this again sends an unintended message to children.”

    Baby teeth are important

    “People believe that the baby teeth are not important because they will fall out anyway,” says Dr Kaunitz. But this is a myth. “Habits are formed early and good hygiene is for life. If decay is present in baby teeth, the bacteria in decay can infect adjacent teeth so the decay process progresses,” she explains. “If the decay is very deep and infects the pulp there will be pain which may cause an abscess and need further expensive treatment. If baby teeth are lost prematurely, permanent teeth may erupt incorrectly or the bite may change as other teeth fill the space of the missing tooth. The result is that further problems are created for the child and makes orthodontic treatment more difficult and protracted.”

    Tips and tricks

    “Bribery and reward sometimes work. My daughter banned the TV for her young son until he brushed his teeth properly and regularly and when he viewed the risk/reward balance he decided to cooperate,” says Dr Kaunitz. “Make dental hygiene a normal part of the daily routine. Don’t make excuses why it can be skipped on any day and children usually cooperate when it becomes a routine.”

    What did your child’s dental routine look like? How did you encourage good dental habits?

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    Ncheaul 8 Mar 2020 3:38 AM

    :)

    Ncheaul 8 Mar 2020 3:34 AM

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    Candyfairy 22 Nov 2019 2:46 PM

    It's just a matter of being a proactive parent and keeping on top of it and making sure their teeth are being brushed properly, they're eating and drinking the right things and getting regular check ups.

    Rose_P 19 Aug 2019 9:41 PM

    The cost of dental care in Australia is just ridiculous. It’s really no wonder so many people have problems with their teeth. When my kids were young I used to encourage them to brush their teeth regularly.

    tinakapoor02 28 Jun 2019 4:48 PM

    Children often spoil their teeth as they most of the time eat chocolate o outside food hence they should brush twice a day and most importantly before they sleep at night. Also know that their roots are very delicate removing teeth at young age can also harm their vision as the nerves are connected.

    Miss19 19 Jun 2019 11:23 AM

    I always tried to take good care of my teeth when I was younger as I had seen kids who had terrible teeth due to lack of care

    Ncheaul 4 Mar 2019 8:22 PM

    Of course, I worry about the hygiene of my children, especially about caring for their teeth. Booklets and posters help me to cope well. I usually order to print it here https://eurekaprinting.com.au/products/booklet_printing/. Here is a print, good quality for a reasonable price. With these brochures, I can be calm when I leave my kids with my grandmother or nanny. I am sure that they will cope and will do everything in accordance with the printed recommendations. All beautiful smiles! =)

    Beauty Obsession 27 Feb 2019 4:27 PM

    A trip to the dentist gave my son a phobia therefore he was willing to brush his teeth more often. I’ve told him he still needs checkups but if he keeps his looks after his teeth then dental work will not be necessary. I limit soft/sweet drinks to very rare treat. Thankfully my kids enjoy drinking water which was not the case when I was a kid. I lived on cordial and soft drinks.

    Peach perfect 27 Feb 2019 11:52 AM

    I usually make up a brush time story and do funny noises on behalf of the germs that are being tickled away ;D

    Breony 26 Feb 2019 12:08 AM

    I think the best tip is to all brush teeth together. My daughter hates brushing her teeth but if she sees us doing it, she’ll happily join in on the family activity!

    Bohemian.Wanderlust 24 Feb 2019 8:43 PM

    This is a great article. My baby is 1 and we are teaching him to brush his teeth and he loves it. We sing a song and do it together

    Beautybabe140194 22 Feb 2019 1:51 PM

    Good to start a good dental care routine at a young age. Great article

    Peta908 19 Feb 2019 10:09 PM

    My boys are thankfully good at brushing their teeth, might have something to do with their granddad showing them his false teeth, stating that his fell out as he didn't brush properly

    MoonlightSak16 19 Feb 2019 12:58 PM

    Some great tips here.

    perthchick 18 Feb 2019 10:31 AM

    My kids are good at brushing their teeth. Now 9 and 10.5 I have bought them their own electric toothbrushes.

    boston_and_bub 17 Feb 2019 8:44 PM

    I play a ‘brush your teeth’ song on my iPhone every night while she lays there and I brush!! It’s the only way she lets me brush them.

    Rpear 15 Feb 2019 10:57 AM

    I wish this was told to every parent particularly in FNQ! At schools we see so many children with decaying tiny little stubby teeth, in their baby teeth ! Oh it's a crisis really!

    ThisIsMe 15 Feb 2019 9:54 AM

    Luckily I never had any issues with my girls with brushing!

    Chrystalage 14 Feb 2019 11:52 PM

    My vet recently told me that I need to start cleaning my dogs' teeth. I'm not looking forward to that. It will be a daily struggle

    angie_robyn 14 Feb 2019 2:07 PM

    These are good tips. One of my kids, who is now 11 has developed a fear of the dentist as a result of having to have fillings and extractions done. He does brush his teeth but is prone to decay. I know his diet could use improvement and is a constant battle for us.

    Lucrecia629 14 Feb 2019 9:31 AM

    Electric toothbrush. My experience is that brushing teeth is a boring activity that kids do not enjoy and will lie to get out of doing because they just don't see the value in it. Hygiene? Why?! Who cares about that?! Not kids, that's for sure! Expect resistance for a good 12 years or so. But electric toothbrushes help because they're easier, which is much more appealing to lazy kids or they make life simpler for parents who are stuck brushing their kids teeth. And sealants, sealants, sealants! It's only through (my) perseverance, regular checkups, sealants and luck that my kids have avoided fillings because left up to them, they'd probably have no teeth at all let alone good teeth.

    Karma Llama 16 Feb 2019 8:38 PM

    Agree on the electric toothbrush thing. As a baby/toddler we also had two or three brushes and flavours of toothpaste on the go at any one time so we could make it a bit of a game and allow my son some choice and control over the task. I can't say that has made it any easier though, at 6yo now it is still a daily battle.

    Hayley644 13 Feb 2019 11:09 PM

    Good tips if you have children.

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