Pediatric Dentistry of Redlands

If your children are fighting you on healthy dental habits, it is critical you don’t take no for an answer. Your children having a healthy smile is critical not only for their oral health, but for their overall health. Research shows that there is a body and mouth connection. When the mouth has bacteria, decay or cavities it can impact the overall health of your children as well. More children miss school due to dental situations than any other reason. And if you want your children to do their best while they are in school, you can’t have them sitting in class with dental pain. When your children tell you no, they do not want to brush their teeth. Do not accept this as the answer. Brushing their teeth is the only way to remove plaque and build-up from the surface of their teeth. The longer that food particles and other items are on their teeth the more likely they are to have dental decay or more serious dental problems. Taking the time to educat...

Your children’s dental health is so important and the steps that they take now as a child to keep their smile healthy can help to increase their dental health well into adulthood. So, help them kick dental decay to the curb with these 4 healthy dental habits. 1.      Always brush and floss regularly. If your child brushes and flosses they are going to be able to decrease their risk of dental decay. Brushing removes food from the surface of the teeth, while flossing removes food and build-up from between their teeth. 2.      Drink water regularly. Water helps to keep them hydrated. Dehydration causes bacteria that is already in their mouth to grow faster. By keeping your children hydrated, it also removes food from the surface of their teeth in between brushing. 3.      Decrease carbohydrate intake and increase their servings of fruits and vegetables. The more fruits and vegetables they eat with high water concentr...

Even though fall is here and the temperature is beginning to cool off remember to have your kids continue to consume water. Kids can become dehydrated even when they think they are not thirsty. Unfortunately, once they feel thirsty, this is already a sign of dehydration and the drier the mouth is, the more likely it is for the bacteria that is already present in your child’s mouth to cause cavities and other dental problems. It may be difficult to get them to drink water if they do not feel thirsty. Try adding fresh fruit or vegetables to their water, and avoid sugary drinks, soda and other fruit juices as they not only cause further dehydration, but the extra sugar that is present in these drinks can create a long-term problem for you child’s smile. As the weather cools down many children don’t think they need to drink water because they do not feel thirsty, but being thirsty only means that it is too late and that your child is already dehydrated and the bacteria in thei...