Every day I see kids with lots of dental problems. Most of the problems are totally preventable … with some help from you, the parent!
Most kids under age 8 or 9 do not have the dexterity to do a good job brushing or flossing. I have found in 30 years of watching kids grow up in the dental office that the kids whose parents helping with the brushing and flossing up to that age grow up to have healthy teeth.
Here’s what we did with our daughter: the rule in our house was that she would brush her teeth and bring the toothbrush to my wife or I. We would then finish the toothbrushing. At bedtime she would bring the brush and the floss and we would finish the brushing and then floss her teeth for her.
Here’s what happens:
- The teeth stay clean so your kids don’t get cavities.
- The kids get “on-the-job” training every time you help them brush and they become pros!
- The habit gets formed from a early age. This is the most important part, so that when they’re on their own brushing and flossing they’re doing it every day and they grow up with healthy habits and healthy teeth.
If the habits never get formed and the skills never get developed, your kids never have a chance to grow up with healthy teeth and end up with cavity after cavity. I have seen this over and over again every day for the last 31 years and so it will always be something I stress with parents.