Healthy teeth are essential for the overall health of your baby. They aid your baby in eating and forming sounds. Apart from this, they affect how their jaws grow. It is essential to provide excellent oral care to your infant since poor oral care can lead to ailments, infections, and other teeth issues. In the following paragraphs, we have mentioned the best ways on how to offer the best dental oral care to your adorable baby.
- Keeping the toothbrush clean
Rinse the toothbrush using tap water after you have cleaned the teeth and gums of your infant. The toothbrush should be stored in an upright manner in an open container to become dry. Moreover, the toothbrush ought to be replaced every couple of months or once the bristles have become frayed or worn.
- Use a soft and small head toothbrush.
The toothbrush of your baby needs to fit comfortably within his mouth, and he should be able to hold and manipulate it easily as well. First, a gauze or damp piece of cloth should be used on the gums of your infant, and a gentle toothbrush should be used once his first tooth has come out. At present, toothbrushes for infants are available in bright shades for effective teeth cleaning, and they consist of small heads that can fit inside their mouth. It will be possible to maintain the gums’ cleanliness by brushing the mouth of the baby, and toothbrushing twice a day will be the best idea.
- Rub your baby’s gums with a clean finger
While each tooth of the baby reaches the gum’s surface, it will open up to showing the tooth. On some occasions, infants tend to rub their gums once a new tooth starts to come out through the gum. This will not be a problem in any case. It is something which we call “teething”.
Babies who are teething tend to exhibit the following characteristics:
• They cry excessively or might appear to be extra cranky
• They do not feed properly
• They tend to suck on toys, bibs, and dummies
• Their nappies become more dirty than usual
All these indications might be due to teething, or they might be a normal development process.
In the case of teething, you can try the following things:
• Gently rub the gums of your baby using a clean finger; however, make certain to get your hands washed at first.
• Provide something to bite on to your infants, such as a cold teething ring or toothbrush.
• Cook mushier food items that require less chewing.
• Provide your infant with something firm to suck on, such as a sugar-free rusk.
Try not to use teething gels since they will not be able to ease the pain whatsoever. Moreover, they might also lead to harmful side effects.
Clean the baby’s teeth with gauze or a soft cloth after each feeding
Tooth decay can be caused by the development of bacteria in the plaque, which forms on the teeth. These bacteria produce acids once your baby consumes food items or takes medication that contains sugar. These acids can cause harm to the teeth. Take the following measures for preventing tooth decay:
• Clean the teeth of your infant using a soft piece of cloth or gauze following every single feeding. You might use a toothbrush once the baby becomes older.
• It is not possible for a baby to brush each and every tooth surface within the mouth, and he will also not comprehend the importance of doing so. For this reason, an adult person needs to clean or brush the infant’s teeth at least once regularly.
• Do not provide your baby with large quantities of sugary food items or liquids. Sweets should only be offered in the form of dessert.
• While cleaning the teeth of the infant using a toothbrush, make certain that it consists of fluoride.
- Prevent “baby bottle tooth decay”
In spite of being temporary, babies’ teeth are essential, and they can be affected by cavities. In infants, tooth decay is usually called Baby Bottle Tooth Decay. The babies need strong and healthy teeth for speaking, smiling, and chewing food items. Below, we have mentioned some surefire ways to prevent this condition.
• Wipe the gums of the baby using a washcloth or clean gauze pad following every feeding.
• Clean and also massage gums in those areas where there is no tooth.
• Floss once all his teeth have come in.
• Make it a point to provide your infant with adequate fluoride, which will reduce cavities.
Visit the dentist every 6 months
It is essential to take your kid to the dentist when he is going to celebrate his first birthday. The first visit will introduce the kid to the dentist and educate the parents regarding the baby’s oral care. However, once he reaches 2 years of age, he makes it a point to visit the dental practitioner at an interval of 6 months for getting the best results. When your kids grow up they might need clear braces and you would want to find dentistry that offers Invisalign.