You know it’s true that good health starts with gut health. It is also true that good dental health and healthy teeth not only make you look and feel fantastic, but they also make it possible to eat food and speak properly. So please, never overlook good oral health because it is important to you and your child’s wellbeing.
Getting your child’s dental health care right throughout their childhood is vital to the proper development of their teeth. You might be surprised how much practicing proper dental care in a child’s earliest years and even months can help them in later life.
As the dental team at Dentrix North Hill in Calgary, will tell you, setting the right example and getting the right care from your dentist are investments of time and money. These investments will deliver huge benefits for your children. Trust us, follow these tips for child dental care now, and they’ll thank you for their overall wellbeing later!
1. Get Your Little Ones Used to the Dentist
The dentist’s office can be a scary place. That’s true for adults, so just imagine how scary it would be for a toddler going on their first visit.
Taking your kid with you to your dental appointments in their very first months can help acclimatize them to the sights, sounds, and smells of going to the dentist. This will ensure that, when the time comes for their own check-ups, the process isn’t as unfamiliar and scary as it might otherwise be.
Plus, if you do this, your dentist can take a quick look at your child’s mouth. This can give the dentist an early feel for your child’s mouth. It can even help them identify and discuss with you potential problems or future treatments that your child might need. With dental care, it always pays to be ahead of the game.
2. Set a Good Example at Home
Visits to the dentist would be that much better if we were all more vigilant about taking care of our teeth at home.
Instilling good dental habits in your children from an early age is something that any dentist will tell you is essential to helping their oral health throughout life.
You can set the right example for your kids by having them brush and floss at the same time as you. This will help them see how it’s done properly. It also will make it more fun for them than it would be if it was something they had to do on their own.
You can also help teach them by explaining the importance of taking care of their teeth. No need for horror stories!
Just explain that brushing and flossing every day will help keep their teeth and gums healthy and free from problems.
3. Keep Up Regular Visits Throughout Every Stage of Life
It’s hugely important to make regular trips to the dentist throughout the development stage of your child’s teeth. Things change rapidly in a child’s mouth in the earliest years. Making sure your dentist is up-to-date on your child’s oral condition is vital to the proper development of their teeth.
From the age of about one year onward, dental trips are recommended. These visits will allow your dentist to monitor the development of your child’s mouth. They can guide your child (and you) through life stages, such as teething and their bite. Your dentist will then be able to give you suggestions on how best to manage your child’s oral health and hygiene. Again, this can also help get your child used to the process of going to the dentist, making it less scary for them.
From the ages of two to five, the dentist can keep an eye on the incoming baby teeth. Often, problems that occur in these years are things that could also affect them in adulthood. Early inspections will help identify any work that might need doing at an early stage.
After this, once the adult teeth start to come through, your child’s dentist will keep track of them through checking, scaling and cleaning, if required. This is also an early opportunity to deal with cavities and to discuss potential orthodontic treatments.
With regular checkups, you can help ensure your child develops a set of healthy, fully-functioning adult teeth to last them a lifetime!
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