Smile Protection: Things You Shouldn’t Encourage

Posted August 28, 2019

Of course, there are the obvious things you should absolutely encourage in terms of your child’s smile health! Keeping a scheduled routine for dental hygiene is wonderful, encouraging kids to participate in selecting dental care products for themselves is a good thing, and promoting the decision to eat good-for-your-teeth snacks and meals is smart! With that said, there may be some little issues that can prove dangerous for your child’s oral health that are actually fairly easy to overlook! Our Dallas, TX team is here to make sure you know just what they are, so you can continue on with your solid approach to smile protection!

Snacking On Ice

It’s true that ice, whether in cube form or crushed, seems like a wise choice for a snack! It’s hydrating, it doesn’t have any sugar, it’s generally easily accessible, and it can be very refreshing! The problem here is that it is just about always dangerous for your child’s oral health (and for your own, too!). Think about the consistency of ice. It’s very, very hard. Trying to bite through it can stress jaw joints and definitely stress teeth, possibly to the point of breaking. Avoid the need for serious restorative care by remembering to keep ice out of the picture as a snack.

Fast Brushing Or Flossing

There may be part of you that suddenly feels the urge to tell your kids to rush! Maybe they aren’t feeling too interested in brushing and flossing these days. Maybe you have a session when they’re feeling very sleepy, so you nearly find yourself saying, “Let’s do it as fast as we can and then we can get into bed!” Unfortunately, rushed brushing, flossing, etc. can become dangerous for oral health because it will result in missed plaque (and can yield abraded teeth and gums). Always take the steady approach instead!

Using Teeth For Other Purposes

You may have grown up using your teeth to carry your car keys, to open up packages when they’re stubborn, etc. However, this is not something you want to pass on to your kiddos. We remind you that using teeth for other purposes (other than forming words, chewing food) can result in oral health damage.

Help Kids Maintain Their Healthy Grins

Don’t forget that in addition to keeping teeth and gums safe through the daily and long-term prevention we suggest for your kiddos, it’s also important to keep an eye out, as you help kids develop beneficial habits! Schedule a visit with your Dallas, TX children’s dentist, Dr. Marr at Pediatric Dental Care at Casa Linda by calling 214-321-4880. We proudly welcome patients from Dallas, TX, and all surrounding communities, including Casa Linda and more.