It’s National Children’s Dental Health Month!
Help the Children in Your Life “Defeat Monster Mouth!”
Library Park Dental is excited to join with thousands of dental professionals, health care providers, and educators to promote good oral health to children and their parents.
The first step is to teach children how to brush their teeth. Teach your child to angle his or her brush at a 45-degree angle from the gum line and use vertical or circular motions. Brush the outer surfaces as well as the inner surfaces. Then brush the chewing surfaces and behind the molars. Do not brush too vigorously; that can cause gum issues. Gently brush each quadrant of the mouth for approximately 30 seconds. This is about the length of time it takes to sing the Alphabet song or Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star!
As children get older, the hygienists will teach your child the importance of flossing. This helps to defeat the monster’s mouth by removing the plaque and bacteria that cause decay from between the teeth.
Teach your children the importance of eating healthy food. Many foods like cheese, milk, leafy greens and almonds help improve tooth health due to the high amounts of calcium and other nutrients.
Other good choices are fruits and vegetables because the high water and fiber content help to balance the sugars they contain and they help to clean the teeth. Saliva production is stimulated, which washes away food particles and helps to prevent decay. Many fruits and vegetables contain vitamin C, which is important for healthy gums, and vitamin A, which is used in building tooth enamel.
And, of course, teach your children to choose water over sugary sodas and juices.
Be sure to schedule regular dental checkups. This allows the dentists to evaluate the health of your child’s mouth and also helps to teach them that regular dental care is an important way to maintain and improve their health. We recommend that a child’s first dental visit should be between eighteen months and two years of age. This allows the child to become comfortable with the dental environment.
At Library Park Dental we want to partner with you to help the children in your life develop healthy habits at an early age so that they can have good oral health for a lifetime!