When that first tooth pokes through your baby’s gums, it is a huge milestone. Soon, that gummy smile will be replaced with tiny teeth. And as that toothy grin comes in, you’ll need to make sure to care for it properly to avoid your child experiencing cavities and other dental issues.
Cleaning Baby’s Teeth
Here’s what you should be doing to ensure the best dental health for your baby:
- Start before the teeth come in
Most parents don’t know this! You can, and should, wipe down your baby’s gums with a warm and wet washcloth. This helps remove remnants of food, breast milk or formula.
- When teeth come in, care for them immediately
Even if your baby has just one tooth, it’s important to keep it clean. Use a soft toothbrush for babies. Many parents think that baby teeth don’t matter as much because they will eventually fall out. And while they will fall out to make way for permanent teeth, your baby can still develop gingivitis and this will affect spacing of the permanent teeth. Yikes!
- Use baby-safe toothpaste
There are toothpastes without fluoride which is what you need for your baby’s teeth. Look for ones that are safe for children under the age of 2. These are fine if swallowed though should still keep it out of their reach when not using it.
- Leave the bottles out of it
Giving your baby a bottle of formula or juice before bed is a bad idea. The sugars from those remain on their teeth all night long and can lead to cavities.
- Give water after meals
Water is great for our bodies and for our babies too. After meals, encourage your child to drink water. It will help flush away excess particles of food, making it less likely to cause damage to your child’s teeth.
- Establish good dental habits
Children with good dental habits are obviously going to have less dental problems. How do they develop good habits? By watching you, of course! Brush with your child from the time that he is old enough to hold the brush himself. Show him how you do it and cheer him on when he does it too. You’ll likely need to brush his teeth for him for a while longer, but letting him brush them too will make him feel proud to care for his smile.
By remembering to do these things and show your child in age-appropriate ways why it’s important, you’ll be on your way to having a child that takes such good care of their teeth that when they do make their first trip to the dentist, your child should receive heaps of praise.
The post Teeth care for babies: How to clean babies teeth appeared first on Smiinky.
from Smiinky http://www.smiinky.com/teeth-care-babies-clean-babies-teeth/
via Smiinky
No comments:
Post a Comment