Proper oral hygiene is crucial to maintaining a healthy smile for a lifetime, and it’s important to get your child started with smart dental health habits as soon as possible. While children can be quite fussy about having to brush their teeth or perform other oral cleaning tasks, there are effective ways to make excellent dental hygiene more engaging for them. Here are a few tips for helping kids get excited about their oral health.
Tell Them a Story
Children tend to learn well from stories that demonstrate a lesson, so representing their oral health needs in fantastic terms can be a great way to get them excited about keeping their teeth clean. A classic example is telling your kid that the terrible sugar monsters are determined to eat their teeth, and they must use their trusty toothbrush and dental floss to slay these horrid beasts and keep their smiles healthy and beautiful. This can make oral hygiene easy to understand for a child who isn’t quite sure what bacterial and dental plaque are yet.
Set a Good Example
Children want to please adults and often imitate them when trying to do so. Making oral hygiene sessions a family affair can allow your child to see that taking care of your teeth is important to you while they observe and imitate your dental cleaning methods. This also allows you to monitor how they are cleaning their teeth and advise them as to how to do it better. For example, you may notice that they are brushing too hard or are not brushing their gums, tongue, or molars adequately and make the appropriate corrections.
Try Kid-Friendly Oral Health Products
You can find oral health products designed specifically for children in your local store or pharmacy. For example, you can buy toothbrushes with images of superheroes or beloved cartoon characters printed upon them, or toothpaste or dental floss that comes in fun flavors like berry or bubblegum. Even simply letting your child pick the color of their toothbrush can help them feel like they have a bigger stake in the game of keeping their smile healthy.
Excellent dental hygiene is crucial to everyone’s oral health and overall well-being. By helping your kid get excited about proper oral care, you can set them up for a lifetime with a beautiful and infection-free smile.
About the Author
Dr. Meghan Thorburn earned her dental degree and completed her residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and has served as a pediatric dentist for more than five years. She is proud to be a member of the American Dental Association, the Texas Dental Association, and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Her office in Fort Worth offers pediatric preventive, restorative, and emergency dentistry. For more tips on getting your kid up to speed with proper oral hygiene, contact her online or call her office at (682) 327-1133.