Pediatric Dental Care and Brushing at Home: Working Together

Pediatric dental care involves a lot of preventative dentistry. Our goal is to ensure that our young patients maintain healthy teeth and gums so that they do not require more invasive procedures like root canals or extractions. By cleaning their teeth twice a year, we make it more likely that their teeth will remain healthy.

During these visits, we are regularly asked questions by parents who want to make sure that their children are doing a good job brushing teeth at home. This is an important step in a child's daily routine. With that in mind, here are some helpful tips to ensure that they are brushing correctly.

1. Provide them with instructions

We can show a child how to brush correctly when they visit our clinic for pediatric dental care. By watching, it will be possible to remind them of important steps at home or to observe them and ensure that they are doing it correctly. We recommend moving the brush in a circular pattern which helps to move food and plaque away from the gums.

2. Use a new toothbrush

It is incredibly important to use the right instruments. This includes a toothbrush that is relatively new. The brush should never have frayed bristles, stink or be discolored. If it is, it is time to replace it with a new one. Also, as a matter, it is wise to simply replace the toothbrush every six months.

3. Buy fluoride toothpaste

Toothpaste that contains fluoride can help to clean teeth and strengthen them at the same time. This is because fluoride is a mineral that can strengthen the enamel and therefore prevent the likelihood that a child will suffer from dental decay. This is a simple and easy way to reduce the likelihood of a child getting cavities.

4. Brush for a full two minutes, twice per day

We recommend that parents purchase a timer or a toothbrush that will automatically turn off when the two minutes is over. This will ensure that a child brushes long enough to remove plaque from their teeth. If they do a rush job, it is likely that food particles and plaque will remain there and this could cause long-term problems.

5. Visually inspect their teeth

One of the most important things a parent can do is to visually inspect their child's teeth when they are done brushing. Many children will not brush correctly and visible plaque will remain on their teeth. In this case, it is important to head back to the bathroom and have them brush correctly or to brush for them. Never assume that a child has done a good job unless they have proven consistently that they do so.

Visit our clinic for pediatric dental care

Brushing at home is important and it will help to reduce the likelihood of a child suffering from dental decay. However, it is also important for a child to visit our clinic twice a year so that we can provide them with professional teeth cleaning to remove plaque and tartar that has left behind from at-home brushing. No matter how diligent a child is, it may be impossible to remove tartar from some of these harder to reach areas. This is where we come in. By taking a team approach to pediatric dental care, we can help your child's teeth to remain healthy.

---