Dental care for toddlers

It is best for parents to start and establish an oral health
routine with their toddlers at an early age. Their role and guidance in their children’s dental care
is very important till at least the age of 5.

Sometimes, parents face a lot of obstacles for
simple activities like brushing teeth as toddlers tend to get cranky at bedtime or often forget to
brush altogether. ‘Hygiene’ obviously does not mean much to children.

Here are a few tips on
making oral hygiene a part of your children’s daily lives:

• Wash early toddler teeth with
  a wet washcloth or a piece of gauze
• Rinse their mouths after every meal or after
  consumption of sugary treats
• Buy special ‘cartoon’ toothbrushes for reluctant toddlers.
  Let them select their own
• Let your children try to brush their own teeth in their own
  way before you instruct them how to
• Try to get the whole family to brush together. This
  makes it special for children
• Try getting your children a drinking fountain attachment.
  Kids like this way of washing their mouths
• Make rinsing and brushing the fun part of a game
  

There’s also the fear of the dentist that
every child suffers from. As a parent, you need to talk about the visit and try to:

• Let
  them watch you get a checkup from the dentist
• Let your toddler sit in your lap for
  comfort on the dentist’s chair
• Get a morning appointment as children are in a better
  mood at this time of the day