Pediatric Dentistry of Redlands

  Spending time with your children when calendars are busy and family members are running from this location to this sport or from this school event to another can make it almost impossible to carve out a little time. But before you panic over never seeing your kids for a few minutes or not having enough quality time, here are 4 ways you can positively engage with your kids while helping them to develop great oral hygiene habits. 1.      Brush and floss your teeth in the same bathroom while playing music in the morning and at night before they go to bed. It makes it fun, light-hearted and they see what a great job you do when brushing your teeth and flossing. It only takes 2 minutes twice a day. 2.      Grab a healthy snack - free of carbs - in between events. Eating fruits and vegetables can rinse food left over from lunch from their teeth and now you get a few minutes to talk about their day with them. 3.    ...

Brushing without toothpaste is just a bath without soap. It is important to have your kids use a dime sized amount of toothpaste in order to ensure they are getting all of the benefits of brushing their teeth. Here are 10 facts about toothpaste you may not know: 1.      Toothpaste helps remove plaque from your teeth. 2.      Toothpaste helps kill bacteria that is on the toothpaste tube. 3.      Toothpaste contains seaweed. 4.      Toothpaste can be used to clean silver and give it the polished look. 5.      Most toothpaste has the same base ingredients. 6.      Abrasives that are used in toothpaste make the process of brushing teeth more effective. 7.      Toothpaste with an ADA seal helps fight tooth decay 8.      Toothpaste can have additives to help in the process of brushing your child’s teeth...

High carb foods, soda, and candy are available at every turn for our children.How do we stop it? Halloween is right around the corner and as parents we may be very aware that the candy battle is about to become a fight on our front door, and all of that dental work paid for is about to be put to the test. There is a better way though. Here are five tips & tricks to decrease candy and increase oral health. 1.      Trade in their candy for extra time with you. Spending time with parents is the ideal for our little ones. If you have a teenager, spend time doing something they love to do to encourage them to make positive candy choices. For each piece of candy they are willing to give you, spend ten minutes doing something fun with them. Play video games, go for a walk, or just sit and listen to them. 2.      Hit the houses with the teal pumpkins. This year, individuals are putting out a different color pumpkin. The teal allow...

1.      How do I introduce the brushing process with my child? a.      It is really important to get them used to using a toothbrush from a young age. To get them started you may want to have them just chew on one as you’re getting ready for your day or as you are getting ready for bed at night. The sooner you begin to introduce a toothbrush the easier the process is. 2.      What are the signs of a more serious dental problem with my child? a.      If your child is complaining of sensitivity, or pain in their mouth, take it seriously. It may end up being nothing, but left unchecked it can turn into something that is extremely painful for your child.   If your child all of sudden develops sleep issues that are unexplained in other ways, they may have a tooth that is bothering them. 3.      What snacks are best for my child? a.      De...

Why you should change out your child’s toothbrush every three months We’re all busy and your pediatric dentist, Dr. Cameron Fuller understands that as well as anybody. However, it is critical he states, “For you to change out your child’s toothbrush around every three months.” A toothbrushe’s job is difficult and studies show that day after day, two times a day brushing breaks down the bristles after just three months. Without the effectiveness of bristles, the important job of keeping bacteria and decay away from your son’s gums becomes more difficult. As your child moves the toothbrush back and forth in their mouth reaching in all of the crevasses and behind the molars, the bristle’s material begins to break down. You can see that eventually the bristles fall out of the toothbrush from wear or they open up and are no longer tight together. Once a toothbrush no longer has bristles that are close together, it leaves gaps when you are brushing your teeth. Each ...