We provide dental care for children in the Bridgeport Chicago area, including Pre-K and Elementary school kids. Parents often do not bring their child to the dentist until much older, or until there’s a problem. This is a mistake. Your child can develop cavities as young as a toddler, bringing your young child to a dental office early is one way to prevent cavities.
Things to know
We all want the best for our child. According to CDC, tooth decay is the number one occurring infectious disease in children. Cavities cause toothache, require kids to miss days from school with discomfort. Tooth decay can create significant pain, making it difficult for kids to eat and talk.
Things to use at home
In addition to bringing your kids to our Bridgeport Dental office, it is important to practice good oral hygiene at home. There’s a recurring theme among children with cavities that I’ve seen: Their parents let them brush their own teeth. Young children’s manual dexterities are not developed enough to clean their own teeth. Parents should be brushing kids teeth under the age of 6, after which, a child should be mimicking parents brushing until his/her motor skills are developed enough. A simple video tutorial is a resource you can use at home. You can find one on the American Dental Association’s website or even on YouTube. Kids are used to receiving digital information. videos easier to receive and digest than you reminded them.
Kids have short attention spans, and it is difficult for them to stay still while you brush their teeth for 2 minutes. Distraction can be a really helpful way to keep your kid still while brushing. Play a short 2-minute video or have them engage in fun activities will usually get the job done while you brush their teeth.
Lets get to the technicals
- as soon as the first tooth appears, decay can happen. wipe newly erupted teeth with clean, moist gauze pads.
- for children under 3, brush with children tooth brush twice a day with a rice-grain-sized fluoride toothpaste.
- for children 3-6, use a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste.
- remember to floss their teeth.
A couple dont’s for parents
- Children no matter how young, can pick up on your emotions, don’t emphasize negative emotions with dental visits. Keep anxiety or concerns to yourself.
- don’t use dental visits as a punishment!
- do not bribe your child
- don’t let them suck on pacifiers past 1 year of age. (don’t dip it in sugar, honey, etc)
- do not give them bottles right before bedtime.
Fluoride in Dental Care for Children
Fluoride is a champion our daily battle against tooth decay. It makes our enamel more resistant to decay, it even repairs small decays that had started. Fluoride is found in natural water resources such as oceans, rivers, and lakes. Fluoride is also often added to our tap water, toothpaste, and mouth washes. Infants and toddlers on bottled water or live in community without fluoridated tap water may be prone to tooth decay. discuss your child’s fluoride need with your dentist or pediatrician.