Keeping your child’s mouth healthy is crucial to their total body health. As parent’s and caregivers, we need to take them to the dentist for their required exams and cleanings, ensure they receive a balanced, healthy diet, encourage a healthy lifestyle and make sure their teeth are brushed twice daily and flossed at least once a day. Children don’t need to have all of their teeth to need to start flossing.
The flossing part seems to be forgotten about by most patients. Once teeth touch each other, they need to be flossed. Sometimes it can be the front teeth and sometimes it’s just the back molars. If you are unsure, ask your dental team!
Dr. Frankel shares 5 tips on how to keep flossing part of your child’s routine from the start:
1) Floss every single night – PERIOD.
2) Decorate your box of floss with stickers to get kids engaged
3) Make a chart or visual image to help children remember that brushing and flossing goes hand-in-hand.
4) Have your child try to floss your teeth – play dentist!
5) Watch a video on how to floss teeth – try YouTube!
American Dental Association Video