As a parent, one of the toughest jobs is instilling good hygiene habits in your kids. This is especially true when it comes to their oral health habits. After all, kids are known to love eating sugary sweets that destroy their teeth and for fighting the brush morning and night. Luckily, there are many things you can do to help monitor their oral health a bit better. Here are four tips to help you successfully do this:
Tell Your Children About Their Dental Appointments: Many parents think that by just showing up to the dentist with their children, it will make the whole process easier. However, this isn't often the case. Kids don't like being left in the dark—if you just show up at the dentist, there is a much higher chance of your kid becoming upset and resistant to the treatment that they need to receive that day. When you make an appointment, talk to your children about it and always explain why these appointments are so important. This will most likely make your kids more accepting of their upcoming appointment.
Remember that Prevention Starts at Home: Keeping your child's oral health at bay is going to be much more difficult if you aren't monitoring their diet and ensuring that they brush night and day. If your child starts to need more excessive dental treatments, they will probably start to become resistant to going to their dental appointments because of the worry of pain and discomfort. Be sure that you monitor the sweets that your child eats, brush your teeth together to make it more of a fun routine and, if you have young children, try to take away the sippy cups, bottles, and pacifiers as soon as possible to prevent oral health complications that come with those.
Maintain a Positive Attitude: When it comes to taking care of your own smile and your child's, you should always try and maintain a positive attitude. Even if you don't want to take the time out to go to your child's dental appointment, don't let your frustration show. And when it comes to going to your own dental appointments, you should maintain a positive attitude about those, as well, which will only reflect back positively to your child.
Opt for Sedation for Their Checkups: If your child is really nervous about going to the dentist, consider finding a child dentist that will provide sedation treatment options. This way, your child can receive the treatment that they need while under safe medication that allows them to relax.
When you consider these four tips, monitoring your child's dental health can be made much easier for you and your child. Talk to resources like Brit E. Bowers, DDS to learn more.
Share6 December 2016
