The festive season is fast approaching, bringing lots of tasty and enticing treats. After surviving such a year, everyone is expected to celebrate and be merry. However, with the delicious treats, pies, and favorite candies late at night, most toddlers need to remember their oral routine.
For some toddlers, the festive season brings exciting feelings, and Christmas is a magical time for most of them. Parents are encouraged to teach and help their toddlers practice good oral hygiene during this festive season.
Most toddlers like to have their own, and you can use this season to give them a small dental kit or let them choose their special toothbrush and mini toothpaste while you lecture them on the importance of good dental hygiene and flossing.
Below are some ways to protect your toddler’s oral health this Christmas:
Ways to protect your toddler’s oral health
1. Brush after meals
Christmas meals like cakes and puddings are usually high in sugar; they are likely to stick to your toddler’s teeth. These sugary meals leave your toddler’s teeth under bacterial attack.
Despite the excitement that comes with Christmas, parents should check on their toddlers and encourage an oral care routine by washing and brushing their toddler’s teeth.
Toddlers can become overwhelmed and depressed as they await Santa’s arrival. Therefore, it is critical to assist them in finding balance with their oral health.
Toddlers thrive on routine, and festive periods like Christmas are usually disruptive for families, ranging from visiting, traveling, and shopping, affecting mealtimes and bedtimes. Therefore, paying attention to these toddlers’ meals can be a challenge.
Furthermore, sugary meals and snacks are within reach during this period, so they should ensure they brush their teeth after sticky and sugary meals to protect their teeth during the season.
2. Clean your teeth properly
Practically, they should brush their teeth at least twice a day using fluoride, which helps strengthen teeth. Then, visit the kid’s dentist in Weston to get good fluoride toothpaste.
It is essential to teach these toddlers how to clean their teeth properly. For example, when using fluoride toothpaste, they are expected to spit and not rinse their mouth after brushing to avoid removing the protective fluoride.
Some sticky food leaves plaque on the teeth, so parents should remember to remind all family members to brush before bed. Dental floss can be used to remove those sticky remnants in between your teeth.
Ensuring some structure during this festive season will help limit unnecessary troubles, like making sure their bedtime routine doesn’t change for the season. And limiting sugary intakes where possible.Hence, as these toddlers eat more treats and desserts, removing the sugar, bacteria, and plaque can help prevent tooth decay and gingivitis.
3. Avoid opening with your teeth
Most toddlers are tempted to open a bottle or tear open snacks and treats with their teeth. Some use their teeth as tools to fix their broken toys; your teeth are not an opener.
Your toddler’s little biters might naturally want to open nuts with their teeth, and the hard surface of the nutshell can easily cause severe gum damage.
Parents should pay close attention to these toddlers and discourage them from using their teeth as openers, as this can lead to cracks or breaks and cause damage to their teeth. Hence, if such an incident occurs, you can take them to a pediatric dentist in Weston to fill and treat the tooth.
4. The cheeseboard and nut
Christmas should be complete with feeding your toddler cheese. Its benefits help your toddler’s teeth. Cheese is good for your toddler’s oral health; it neutralizes the acidic plaques formed from the acidic food taken earlier. In addition, this cheese helps prevent tooth decay.
The amount of saliva produced in the body increases when cheese is eaten; this saliva helps to maintain the body’s pH level naturally. Natural protective layers are also formed on the teeth when toddlers eat cheese. Hence the chemical compounds the cheese produces fight against the acid that erodes the teeth’ enamel. So the more cheese they eat, the less harmful acid they produce and the more cleaning saliva they produce, resulting in fewer cavities for toddlers.
Eating nuts is also good and beneficial if you are looking for a healthy snack this season. Almond or macadamia nuts and unsalted nuts are good choices. These nuts are a good source of fiber and contain different nutrients and healthy fats. Almond flour can be used to make cookies and treats, unlike bleached flour, which contains more carbohydrates. Almonds can be added to another streusel of cookies for added nutrition.
5. Book an appointment with your dentist
School breaks and holidays are ideal times to schedule teeth cleaning in Weston and a toddler checkup with your pediatric dentist in Weston, FL.
If you are around, you can visit Sweet Tooth Pediatric Dentistry Weston, the best dentist in Weston, FL; they will help you with your toddler’s oral health.
If you last visited your dentist a while ago, you can book an appointment this holiday season so they can look at your toddler’s teeth and prepare them for the Christmas treats ahead.
This leaves you with no worries during the Christmas season. It is the best time to help toddlers establish healthy dental habits. Let the professionals at Sweet Tooth Pediatric Dentistry in Weston make your toddlers smile brightly when you visit them. You can ask the dentist for more tips on how to protect your toddler’s teeth during Christmas.
Conclusion
The oral health of toddlers is very important and needs to be carefully maintained. They can stay on track by learning and developing a strong oral regimen early on.
Parents should constantly make sure that these children properly wash and wipe their lips before bed, even on Christmas Eve.
In Weston, Florida, Sweet Tooth Pediatric Dentistry cares about the smile and dental health of its patients. Please schedule a consultation with us right now!
Christmas might be more pleasurable if you include a few easy steps in your toddler’s dental hygiene routine during this festive season.
Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year to everyone of you.