Dental Care for Preschoolers

Primary teeth eruption

While the teething process varies for each baby, most children start to teeth at around six months; however, it’s possible for a baby to have their first tooth at four months of age or not have their first tooth until twelve months of age. Each child will have twenty baby teeth in their upper and lower jaw; the lower and upper central teeth will typically be the first to emerge and leave a child’s mouth. Most children will have all their baby teeth by the time they are three years old; the lower front teeth will be the first ones to start falling out at about six years of age, and usually, by 12-13, all the baby teeth will fall out and be replaced with permanent teeth.

 All children will gradually lose their primary teeth and grow adult teeth between six and 12 years. Wisdom teeth will erupt at a later age. 30% of people will not have wisdom teeth. For wisdom teeth extraction in Brisbane see Pure Dentistry.

Paediatric dentists for preschoolers

Importance of baby teeth

Why does it matter to take care of my child’s primary teeth?

Is dental care necessary for baby teeth?

My baby will lose their primary or milk teeth anyway, so why should I bother keeping them healthy?! Dentists get that a lot! Let’s find out why a child’s teeth and gums are so important for their dental health.

Baby teeth play an important role in children’s overall health and dental development. Taking good care of your child’s teeth and teaching them good dental habits are essential because they need their primary teeth for proper chewing, talking, speaking, pronouncing words, and above all, for the correct eruption of their adult teeth.

Premature loss of primary teeth

Poor oral health, having lots of sugary foods or sugary drinks can damage children’s teeth and lead to early childhood caries and finally premature tooth loss.

Early childhood caries, typically caused by a child having lots of sweet drinks, is one of the most common reasons for a child’s tooth loss. Preventing dental caries can be achieved by promoting healthy living habits in your child and limiting their intake of baby high-sugar drinks and snacks that can lead to poor oral health. Good dental practices and avoiding many sugary beverages can prevent dental caries and improve your child’s dental health.

An adult tooth that already exists underneath the child’s gum needs proper space to come through; a baby tooth will hold this space for the appropriate positioning of the adult tooth in the mouth. If a child’s teeth fall out prematurely due to poor dental care or dental decay, it can lead to dental complications.

The best time of dental care for preschoolers

Having healthy teeth and gums will benefit your child and guarantee their overall health in the long run. But you may ask, “when should I start to take care of my child’s teeth?” Well, that’s a great question!

While some parents think they need to wait until all children’s teeth have emerged and then practice dental care, it’s interesting to know that you need to brush your child’s teeth as soon as the first tooth pokes through the gum and perhaps even a while before that!

The moment your child’s first tooth has emerged in their mouth, it is susceptible to tooth decay! Therefore, the sooner you start to brush your child’s teeth, the lower the risk of dental decay will be.

Ensure your baby’s good dental health

Cleaning your infants’ gums

Oral health professionals suggest parents or other family members start dental care for their children by cleaning their gums even before children’s teeth have erupted in their mouth. Cleaning the child’s tongue and gums will help reduce bacteria from the child’s mouth and can remind parents or guardians that good oral health habits should be practised at an early age.

You can prepare a clean gauze pad or soft cloth and gently rub the moist cloth over your baby’s gum. Wiping your baby’s gums can be done twice a day regularly. If your little one is getting their first tooth and their gums are sore because of teething, placing a clean gauze that is a little cool may help relieve the pain. You can put the pad or cloth in the fridge for a little while before placing it on your child’s gums. Do not use toothpaste for cleaning your infant’s gums.

Cleaning teeth from the very beginning

Cleaning children’s teeth early and as soon as their first primary tooth erupt can prevent tooth decay and keep the decay-causing bacteria away from their mouth. To keep your child’s teeth clean, brush them twice a day using a toothbrush with soft bristles.

In addition to brushing teeth, your child’s regular dental check-up, using fluoride toothpaste, drinking fluoridated tap water, healthy eating, and avoiding sugary foods and drinks can all be good ways of keeping your child’s teeth and gums healthy and preventing dental caries.

How to brush your child’s teeth

According to dental health professionals, a major part of proper dental care for baby teeth would be brushing teeth twice a day with a soft toothbrush and toothpaste to prevent dental decay.

The first step of brushing your baby’s teeth is to buy a toothbrush with soft bristles and a low fluoride toothpaste specially made for your baby’s teeth.

If your child is three years old or more, apply a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste on the soft toothbrush. Hold the toothbrush at 45 degrees and gently brush their teeth. Try to brush your baby’s teeth in gentle circles and avoid applying pressure because you may hurt your child’s gums.

As you start to brush their teeth, make sure you clean the outer and inner sides of every tooth carefully. Do not forget to clean the chewing surfaces of your little one’s teeth and brush them with a back and forth motion. In addition to cleaning your child’s teeth and gums, brushing the child’s tongue is also important to get rid of bad bacteria.

Young children may be excited or curious to wash their teeth, especially if you have bought them a fancy electric toothbrush. That’s fine; you can let them be a part of their dental care. Parents need to replace toothbrushes for their children every three to four months or even sooner if the bristles are no longer in good shape.

Read about electric toothbrushes here.

Observe your child when they are brushing their teeth

While it’s good news that preschool children are showing interest in brushing teeth, they need to be monitored while doing that until eight years of age.

You may be able to get your child to brush teeth twice a day using low fluoride toothpaste. Still, if they are not applying the correct brushing technique, food particles and debris won’t be removed properly, which can eventually lead to dental decay.

For some children, their dentist may advise the use of a higher fluoridated toothpaste.

Tooth Decay

What causes tooth decay?

How to prevent tooth decay?

Practising proper dental care for preschoolers is fundamental because poor oral hygiene will give rise to plaque building up. Plaque, a sticky pale, and a thin film of bacteria begin to form on the teeth after eating and drinking. Removing plaque with proper brushing is necessary to preventing tooth decay.

The harmful bacteria of dental plaque will change the sugar in sweet foods and sugary drinks into acid, attack the enamel, and cause dental decay. Since a child’s tooth enamel is thinner than adult teeth, they are often more prone to tooth decay; therefore, regular dental check-ups, avoiding sugary foods and sweet drinks, and teaching children good oral health habits are all beneficial to young people children.

Promote healthy eating habits

Most children love to eat sugary stuff and snacks; replacing soft drinks or fruit juice with tap water that contains fluoride can help prevent dental decay, and sugary things like ice cream with fresh fruit will help reduce the risk of tooth decay.

To ensure your child has healthy teeth, arrange their dental check-up early and after they get their first baby tooth. A pediatric dentist may encourage your child better to limit their intake of unhealthy foods and brush their teeth twice a day.

Fluoride Toothpaste

Why fluoride toothpaste?

As you may already know, fluoride has cavity-fighting features that can prevent dental decay and should be included in your child’s dental care routine.

You can use low fluoride toothpaste (pea-sized amount) for preschool children as a preventive measure against tooth decay. You can also get your children to drink tap water because, typically, tap water contains fluoride.

Useful oral health messages

  • A baby tooth matters as much as permanent teeth do.
  • Taking care of children’s teeth early is essential.
  • Get your baby to drink tap water to limit the risk of dental decay.
  • Use low fluoride toothpaste for preschoolers.
  • Your child’s regular dental check-ups should not be neglected.

Some private dental clinics provide pediatric dental services in addition to dental treatment for adults. Parents are recommended to rely on trustworthy health information for their children’s health. You can consult with pediatric dentists or other oral health professionals to receive useful oral health messages.