Tips to Prevent Tooth Decay in Children

Martin Urban DDS
2 min readOct 29, 2021

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When it comes to oral health, the best place for your children to start is with prevention. The sooner you can get them started on a good brushing and flossing routine, the better off they will be in the future. As parents, there are many things that we can do to help prevent tooth decay in our children. Here are some tips on how to keep new teeth!

Regular Routine Check-Ups

It would help if you always had your child checked by a dentist every six months regarding dental health. Depending on the age of children, some dentists will recommend that they are seen more or less frequently than this. For example, if you have young children who are just getting their adult teeth in and still use bottles at night, it might be best for them to visit the dentist closer to once every three months rather than six.

Teach Your Children Not To Share The Bottle

When you were a child, did you share your cup with other children? If so, then it’s time to teach your kids not to do this. Sharing cups can spread bacteria from one person’s mouth and lead to cavities in the teeth of the next person who drinks out of that same cup or bottle.

Healthy Diet Equals Healthy Teeth

Just like adults need proper nutrition for their bodies, children also require healthy diets, including their mouths! By making sure they are getting plenty of nutritious foods throughout the day (like fruits), you should prevent tooth decay in children. Sugar is beneficial when consumed in small amounts, but it should never be eaten alone as sugar leads to many dental health problems.

Scheduling Brushing Time

Another way to prevent tooth decay in children is by making sure they are brushing their teeth every night before bedtime and again when they wake up in the morning! You can either set a timer or create some reward system for this activity, but you should make it part of your child’s daily routine if at all possible. This will help them establish good habits throughout adulthood — assuming these practices continue well into their teen years.

Using Fluoride Toothpaste

The best type of toothpaste to use on kids who do not yet have complete control over how much paste they are putting on their brush is a fluoride-free tooth with age-appropriate flavors like bubblegum. Fluoride is a natural mineral that has been proven to help prevent cavities in children and adults alike!

Originally published at https://martinurbandds.net on October 29, 2021.

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Martin Urban DDS

Martin Urban, DDS, is a dentist working in the state of Massachusetts where he has developed a career over the past 20 years. Read more at MartinUrbanDDS.org