Looking after your childs teeth in lockdown | Dental Blog

I am at home instead of in the practice right now, and having spent a day helping with home schooling of my children it got me thinking about the things we should be doing in lockdown to look after our kids teeth.

With the daily routine upset there is an increased risk of us all doing things that cause dental problems such as snacking more or, with a disturbed routine not keeping up with our normal home care.
Things can happen fast in children’s mouths so it is even more important for them .

We need to remember that to get tooth day you need 3 things

Sugar + Bacteria + Time = Decay

Sugar is consumed by the bacteria which make acid that then attacks our teeth. Over time and with multiple repetitions of this cycle we get decay

So my recommendations for things you can actively do for your kids

Minimise the frequency of sugar exposure which means

3 square meals a day, try to minimise snacking
If they are snacking make sure its sugar free
drinks between meals should be water or milk
if you are using juices they must be Sugar Free as the frequency of the sugar exposure is more important than the amount
No added sugar drinks still contain sugar and are damaging to teeth.
And diluting regular juice does not make it safe

Bacteria

This is about really thorough cleaning at least twice a day. If ever there was a time to take a look at how well, even your older children, are brushing it is now. Maybe even think about digging out some disclosing tablets to give them feedback.

If we can reduce the total amount of bacteria in the mouth then when sugar is consumed there are fewer bacteria to make acid and so less damage will be done

Finally make sure you are using a good toothpaste that contains fluoride at a concentration between 1000parts per million and 1500parts per million