Dental Stuff for Kids Part 2

We all know that toothbrushing is very important for our childrens dental health.
For some parents, getting our kids to either a)brush their own teeth or b) let us do it for them it can be a big challenge that everyone dreads at the end of the day. Sticker charts can be effective in encouraging kids to brush.

I once showed my friends kids this photo of a dentally challenged midget we met in Egypt 
and apparently they've been excellent tooth brushers ever since! --->

There are also hundreds of products out there preying on our parental consumers brains. My daughter has never watched an episode of Dora the Explorer or the Wiggles but thanks to cleverly marketed dental products, she knows who both are!

So what to choose? How often to brush? Who does the brushing? What toothpaste and how much?

I have been using age appropriate Colgate toothbrushes on our daughter since her first teeth were fully erupted. Before that, we gave her a pigeon baby training toothbrush that we got free from a promotion on a packet of rusks.

We started usingThe Wiggles Milk Teeth toothpaste by Macleans- primarily because I had lots of free samples of it at work, but as soon as we could we switched to the same toothpaste that we adults use for at least one of the brushes a day, because here in Tauranga there is no fluoride in the water, and baby teeth need fluoride as they erupt to stay strong. Toothpastes formulated especially for children have reduced fluoride in them- these are fine if you live in an area where the water is fluoridated.

PLEASE NOTE- I am a qualified dentist, I believe in the years and years of respected research supporting the use of fluoride to prevent tooth decay. I realise that there are lots of people out there who disagree and while I respect their right to their opinions, I am not interested in getting into a debate on the pros vs cons of fluoride.  That said, calcium and phosphate are just as important for healthy tooth structure and there are a few products out there that have all three in them, and a couple that are fluoride free.

So- toothbrushing technique? I use a tiny smear of toothpaste- on the Colgate brushes the brush has a blue area on it to help you measure how much toothpaste to use.

I brush Miss Rs teeth for her- each corner at a time (top left, top right, lower left lower right etc). I then let her have a go herself. We also don't rinse the tooth paste off at the end- she spits and we're done. That allows the toothpaste to have contact with the teeth for longer.  We brush twice a day- after breakfast and before bed.

Dental Stuff for Kids Part 1

I am a mum, and I am also a dentist- and I wasn't to know 16 years ago when I was applying for university courses, but it is actually a great career for a mum.
It has very flexible hours (especially if you have an understanding boss who is also a mum like mine) and you hardly ever have to work weekends or bring work home. And of course the pays not too bad if you're busy, although thanks to Kevin Milne  we might be experiencing a run of bad debts.

That rant  can be left to the serious dental bloggers, but my short response is this- it cost me nearly $100K to train, and running a dental practice with the latest technology and techniques that people should expect from a modern dentist is not cheap. Nobody goes to the supermarket, fills their trolley and forces a "flexible response" from the checkout! The practice where I work has flexible payment options that we are happy to discuss with people up front if they ask first!

Gone are the days where getting dentures for your 21st birthday was normal. We can offer amazing technology and techniques to our patients- I personally spend thousands a year on travelling to training courses and conferences to keep up to date with research and technology so I can offer it to my patients.

Which brings me to the reason for this blog, and I would prefer it to be helpful rather than ranty.....childrens dental health. I have realised during the course of this post that I could probably write a book on this topic so I will break it up into segments so you don't have to read a novel.

Here in New Zealand we are lucky to have the government funded school dental service which provides dental care to children from the time they first get teeth till the time they go to high school. Once they go to high school they can be seen by a dentist and its also government funded.
Despite Plunket doing their best to get the message out there, lots of parents aren't aware that their children can be registered with a school dental nurse from 6 months. If you wait till they get to school it can be too late, as the baby teeth will have been through for long enough to get decay.

However- the school dental service has its limitations. They are an extremely valuable part of dental care in NZ, but due to their high work load, they don't always get to see every child every year. If your school has a mobile dental service and your child happens to be off sick the day the van is in town, you miss out.

They also may not have as much time as they would like to spend talking to parents about good home care and diet advice. So unfortunately lots of kids in NZ still aren't getting regular dental checkups and advice.

Most dentists will see your children for a small fee for a second opinion or peace of mind- I am always happy to do so, and often we can tag a quick childs checkup onto the end of their parents visit.

So- if your children aren't enrolled with your local school dental service, ring them up today before they all break up for the holidays! If you have no luck there, phone around your area for a dentist who is happy to see children. Regular checkups are one of the BEST ways to ensure your children have healthy teeth for life. Healthy teeth for life means you won't ever have to take Kevin Milnes advice....

Miss R baking her "birthday cake".

The aftermath..

Stay tuned for parts 2/3/4......