Oral Hygiene - How to Protect Toddler Teeth from Cavities

Our parents are always worried about our Kid’s Oral Hygiene, especially till the time they start Brushing and Maintaining Oral Hygiene by themself, which normally starts at the age of 3-4 years.

We should understand and accept that no matter how hard we try and clean the teeth of our babies and maintain excellent oral hygiene, still there is a higher possibility of developing cavities in kids.

Let us first see how we can reduce the chances of developing cavities at a young age, till 
the time our kids are not brushing their teeth.

1# Reduce their Exposure to Sugary Foods and Products

A most dangerous time is when our kids sleep in the night their teeth are exposed to sugary food /extract for longer durations. This exposure can be reduced by cleaning the teeth of our kids by rubbing their teeth gently with a soft cotton cloth after they fall asleep. A small amount of baby toothpaste can also be applied based on the age of your kid.

2 # Finger Toothbrush

You can consider using the finger toothbrush for your Baby, once she or he is 3 months old. Many child dental doctors advised cleaning the baby’s new teeth, gums and tongue,  once they entered their 4 months, to prevent early childhood decay.

3 # Save your Child Enamel

The enamel of your baby’s teeth is the most important in saving them from tooth decay as they are the first line of defense it is the topmost layer of our teeth, and it is very soft in babies that’s why more care is required to prevent them from early decay. Enamel is made up mostly of minerals, primarily hydroxyapatite.

4 # Avoid Bedtime Bottle-feeding

 As it will increase the exposure time of milk and the sugar within the teeth of our baby. We all know that Late Night Bottle-feeding to babies is bad for their health. But, due to motherhood problems, most of the mothers cannot see their baby struggle towards the hungry. And, in the same cases, it’s easy for the mother to put the bottle in the baby’s mouth for good sleep. 

5 # Follow the Golden Rule – Brushing Twice a Day

Teach Your kids to brush their teeth properly every day at least 2 times (morning and night ) with fluoride-based baby toothpaste. Choose the Paste as per your Child’s Age.

6 # Give a Sip of Water

Always try and give a sip of water to kids when they are done eating chocolate and sugary food as it will help clean sugary remains from teeth.

7 # Focus on your Child’s Calcium Intake

Add some calcium supplement in your kid’s diet as it helps in improving the strength of teeth enamel, this can be in the form of tablets or some food items like milk, cheese, curd, etc

8 # Most Important Tips

Replace Chocolate and sweets with fruits and vegetables in your kid’s daily meals. Most importantly do visit a pedodontist every 3 months to get a proper checkup of your Baby’s Teeth. Prevention is better than cure is a very old saying buy this is true in this case as well as once cavities are developed in your baby’s teeth then there is no going back.