Keeping one’s oral health in perfect shape is a lifetime requirement and not just something that is needed for one phase in one’s life, such as the growing up years or adolescence. Not only is it part of proper hygiene, but it is also key to preventing health issues such as diabetes, heart ailments, and cancer. Additionally, maintaining great oral health is also important in having great self-esteem, especially with a perfect set of pearly whites and a pleasant breath smell.
As such, you should, as a parent, make conscious efforts to ensure that your family’s oral health is always in perfect condition. Here are six simple ways to achieve just that:
Teach your kids good dental hygiene at the soonest time possible.
A child’s first tooth usually shows up at six months. By age two, your kids should start to learn to brush their own teeth, with your supervision. Just like in the case of a lot of mechanical skills that need repetition to become part of muscle memory, letting your kids practice dental hygiene constantly will turn it into muscle memory. With this, they will take it until adolescent and adulthood, so they’d be pretty much set for their lifetime.
Protect them from habits or accidents that could damage their teeth and jaw.
There are kids (and adults as well) that have the bad habit of grinding their teeth or clenching their jaw, sometimes due to stress or for no reason at all. While these habits may seem harmless at face value, they could actually lead to serious problems.
For one, both habits could lead to a condition called temporomandibular disorder (TMD), which causes pain in the facial and neck regions. If anyone in your family happens to suffer from it, then you should quickly consult with an experienced TMD specialist for proper advice and medical attention.
Teeth grinding could also cause the teeth to chip and cause oral cavities, plus they would look just horrible. As such, you should correct these behaviors outright to prevent any of the negative impacts that could directly result from them.
Go easy on sugary and acidic foods.
Sugar could turn into an acid, which could then cause tooth problems. Candies, chocolates, sugary beverages — they are just some of the common sugary food that your family must consume in moderation. Additionally, soft drinks, fruit juices, and other acidic food contribute to the softening of tooth material, which then leads to dental caries and a host of other oral health problems.
Just like in many dental health-related issues, your proactive actions could spell the difference between healthy teeth and rotten ones. Not only would moderating your family’s sugary and acidic food intake protects your teeth, but it would also help you avoid other health problems such as diabetes or acid reflux.
Make dentist’s appointments a family affair.
Among the key elements of maintaining great oral health are regular visits to the dentist. If you have a family dentist, then be sure to treat each visit to the clinic as a mini family bonding opportunity. This would make your visits exciting and fun since family members will see it as a chance to do something great together as a family.
Invest in the right dental health products.
Not all dental products offer the same benefits to one’s teeth and gums, so it’s wise to be picky with the oral health items you’re buying. For example, not all toothpaste brands are recommended by dentists for those with sensitive teeth since it’s considered a ‘specialized’ kind of toothpaste product. Some mouthwash products are likewise highly preferred over the others by oral health professionals and the same with toothbrushes and dental flosses.
You can remove the guessing part of the equation by asking your family dentist for recommendations on the specific dental products that you should buy. Once you’ve bought and used those products and confirmed that they do work, make sure you stick to them for consistent results and benefits.
Keep tobacco away.
Smoking is proven to cause not only lung and heart problems but also gum disease as well. If you or anyone in your family is a smoker, then you have to drop the nasty habit soon. It can be hard, especially if the family member is addicted to smoking, but it’s something that must be done to avoid the different health issues associated with it.
With these six simple tricks, you can go a long way in protecting your family’s oral health and maintaining its excellent condition.
