Ten Bad Habits for Your Children’s Teeth
Your child’s dental care should start early and listed below are ten bad habits to avoid.
- Avoiding the dentist. Children need to see a dentist early on, and they will need regular checkups every six months.
- Breastfeeding on demand after your child gets their first teeth, because breastmilk contains lactose which is cavity-causing sugar.
- Giving your child a night-time bottle of milk or even worse, juice. If they need something, give them a bottle containing plain water.
- Allowing your child to constantly drink from a sippy cup containing any sweetened liquid.
- Swallowing fluoridated toothpaste can give your child too much fluoride. Ask us for advice on using non-fluoridated toothpaste until your child can spit out excess paste.
- Thumb sucking after age four can damage their permanent teeth.
- Allowing a preschooler to use a pacifier can affect their permanent teeth and jaw development.
- Chewing on pencils or pens increases the risk of oral trauma and introduces bacteria into your child’s mouth.
- Nail-biting could increase your child’s risk of clenching and grinding their teeth, and it’s bad for their nails!
- Drinking fizzy and sugary beverages. These drinks contain empty calories and can decay teeth.
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