You live in a world full of temptations of all kinds. And the poor teeth bear the brunt of
eating all those goodies that you consume.
We parents often give in to our children’s eating demands. We buy them chips, candies of
all kinds and even biscuits with creams, syrups and so on. And how many of us set the best
example by diligently brushing our teeth twice a day? Under these circumstances, I am sure
most of you parents would agree when I say, that we would be glad if our children would
land up brushing even once but effectively.
Good oral hygiene habits start from us the parents , if we brush our teeth and floss at night
before going to bed , so will our children, Trust me on that! So do it for the little one if not for
yourself and start today!
The first advice I give to all parents is that, they should emphasise on night brushing. I often
explain to my patients that we brush in the morning primarily to get rid of bad odour from
the mouth and feel fresh. At night we need to clean the teeth well as we need to keep the
teeth surface free of any food as otherwise, the friendly bacteria in our mouth get a chance to
become un-friendly and start causing erosion of enamel leading to dental caries.
A few important points to keep in mind considering the next couple of months will see the
summer holidays:
1. Insist on brushing twice a day and no compromises on that!! Do it yourself too!
2. Ask your child to have one healthy food if he wants to have a junk food. One for
one, which means in a day,, if he insists on 2 items of junk, he is also forced to eat 2
healthy things! That is what I do with my son as a result when he has had the healthy
food, he is left with little space in his stomach to have the junk food. so its a win-win
situation for me as a parent. I am giving him the satisfaction of having his favourite
food and am also taking care of his dental and general health.
3. If your child is eating something sticky, eg jelly biscuits ,chips ,namkeen, sweets or
candies, tell him that he needs to brush his teeth immediately , if not at least make
rinsing a habit. If he is in a particularly un-compromising mood and doesn not want to
do either, give him a fibrous fruit to eat like an orange , apple etc.
4. Its a good idea to complete dental treatments during the holidays ,one can start with
dental check ups. I also suggest that any orthodontic work also should be started in the
holidays as there can be some discomfort at the initial stage of the treatment. This will
gives our precious ones sometime to get adjusted to the braces or any appliance that
has been fixed in the mouth.
5. Children with tendency of dental caries should be given fluoride treatments and pit
and fissure sealants wherever necessary. Sealants are a very good preventative and
non invasive way of protecting molars and premolars form caries.
6. Citrus fruits like oranges ,apples ,kiwi are a good source of vitamin C and are very
good for dental health as mentioned earlier. But prolonged lemon sucking or orange
sucking can exposure teeth to harm. Cheese is also a great source of calcium and
phosphorous which is very beneficial. Similarly sweet potato and broccoli too. Onions
have a great bacteria killing effect in the mouth. They are most useful when eaten
raw.
7. No harm chewing some gum sometimes for older kids as chewing generates saliva
which washes off bacteria and acid which protects teeth from decay. Although please
note that it is not a substitute for brushing or flossing.
8. Young mothers please avoid filling bottles with milk, juices ,sweetened drinks etc at
night. Infants sleeping with bottles at night have a high chance rampant caries.
So keep some of these guidelines in mind and lets make the holiday’s a happy season for our teeth as well !
So Parents have a great time these vacations ,spend lots of quality time with your kids and
give them lots and lots of love.
eating all those goodies that you consume.
We parents often give in to our children’s eating demands. We buy them chips, candies of
all kinds and even biscuits with creams, syrups and so on. And how many of us set the best
example by diligently brushing our teeth twice a day? Under these circumstances, I am sure
most of you parents would agree when I say, that we would be glad if our children would
land up brushing even once but effectively.
Good oral hygiene habits start from us the parents , if we brush our teeth and floss at night
before going to bed , so will our children, Trust me on that! So do it for the little one if not for
yourself and start today!
The first advice I give to all parents is that, they should emphasise on night brushing. I often
explain to my patients that we brush in the morning primarily to get rid of bad odour from
the mouth and feel fresh. At night we need to clean the teeth well as we need to keep the
teeth surface free of any food as otherwise, the friendly bacteria in our mouth get a chance to
become un-friendly and start causing erosion of enamel leading to dental caries.
A few important points to keep in mind considering the next couple of months will see the
summer holidays:
1. Insist on brushing twice a day and no compromises on that!! Do it yourself too!
2. Ask your child to have one healthy food if he wants to have a junk food. One for
one, which means in a day,, if he insists on 2 items of junk, he is also forced to eat 2
healthy things! That is what I do with my son as a result when he has had the healthy
food, he is left with little space in his stomach to have the junk food. so its a win-win
situation for me as a parent. I am giving him the satisfaction of having his favourite
food and am also taking care of his dental and general health.
3. If your child is eating something sticky, eg jelly biscuits ,chips ,namkeen, sweets or
candies, tell him that he needs to brush his teeth immediately , if not at least make
rinsing a habit. If he is in a particularly un-compromising mood and doesn not want to
do either, give him a fibrous fruit to eat like an orange , apple etc.
4. Its a good idea to complete dental treatments during the holidays ,one can start with
dental check ups. I also suggest that any orthodontic work also should be started in the
holidays as there can be some discomfort at the initial stage of the treatment. This will
gives our precious ones sometime to get adjusted to the braces or any appliance that
has been fixed in the mouth.
5. Children with tendency of dental caries should be given fluoride treatments and pit
and fissure sealants wherever necessary. Sealants are a very good preventative and
non invasive way of protecting molars and premolars form caries.
6. Citrus fruits like oranges ,apples ,kiwi are a good source of vitamin C and are very
good for dental health as mentioned earlier. But prolonged lemon sucking or orange
sucking can exposure teeth to harm. Cheese is also a great source of calcium and
phosphorous which is very beneficial. Similarly sweet potato and broccoli too. Onions
have a great bacteria killing effect in the mouth. They are most useful when eaten
raw.
7. No harm chewing some gum sometimes for older kids as chewing generates saliva
which washes off bacteria and acid which protects teeth from decay. Although please
note that it is not a substitute for brushing or flossing.
8. Young mothers please avoid filling bottles with milk, juices ,sweetened drinks etc at
night. Infants sleeping with bottles at night have a high chance rampant caries.
So keep some of these guidelines in mind and lets make the holiday’s a happy season for our teeth as well !
So Parents have a great time these vacations ,spend lots of quality time with your kids and
give them lots and lots of love.
