Dental habits are formed at a very young age and that is why it is important to ensure that you start looking after your children’s teeth as soon as they appear at around 6 months of age.

In this article, we look at Writtle Dental Practice’s 5 top tips to ensure that your children grow up with good dental habits.

1. Lead by Example

A good way to get your children into the habit of brushing their teeth twice a day is to lead by example. Let your children see you brushing your teeth and get them to brush along too. Until children are six or seven they will need help brushing their teeth, but there is nothing to stop them also helping you brush your teeth.

2. Don’t make brushing a chore

The last thing you want to do is making teeth brushing a battle ground. Why not consider getting toothbrushes with your children’s favourite cartoon characters on them or if your children like to sing, make up a song about teeth brushing to sing whenever they brush, you can find ideas for this online.

3. Use Technology

An electric toothbrush can be a great way to motivate children to brush their teeth. Many also include a timer to ensure that children become aware of how long they need to brush their teeth for to ensure that they remove all the plaque. The newest technology will even link their toothbrush to specially designed apps to track how often and how effectively they brush.

There are now also a number of different apps which will track your teeth brushing even if you do not have an electric toothbrush. With timers that incorporate their favourite songs or fun pictures which are revealed when they brush for long enough.

4. Highlight Missed Bits

Using disclosing tablets once a month can provide a great visual aid to show those areas that are being missed. By joining in you can show that everyone misses spots sometimes, but with good brushing techniques all areas can be cleaned.

5. Attend for regular dental appointments

Studies have shown that a child’s fear of the dentist is directly linked to their parents’ attitude to dental visits. By ensuring that you bring your children along to your dental appointments from a young age, they can learn that there is nothing to fear from the dental chair. To begin with the dentist will only ask them to sit in the chair, first with a parent or guardian and then on their own. They may ask if the child will open their mouth. This will help to build confidence and reduce fear.

If you would like more help and advice on teaching your children good dental habits, call Writtle Dental Practice on 01245 421781 and book your family consultation today.