From the Very First Tooth

In the homeland of the great storyteller Hans Christian Andersen, in Denmark, children from a very early age are taught to carefully and properly care for their teeth and visit the dentist every six months, and if necessary, more often. And you won’t believe it - in this country there is almost no caries on permanent teeth.
Do you want to be surprised?

Surprise 1. You should buy your first toothbrush for the first tooth that has erupted. These brushes are ultra-small and ultra-soft, sometimes in the form of a fingertip with a bristle at the end, you can buy them at the pharmacy. Brush the first tooth and the next ones as usual - morning and evening, only very carefully and without toothpaste.

Surprise 2. From the very first teeth, this responsibility will become your personal daily concern. PARENTS SHOULD HELP CHILDREN BRUSH THEIR TEETH UNTIL AROUND 10 YEARS OLD: it is rare that a child is able to completely clean their teeth of plaque on their own.

Surprise 3. There are now many different children's brushes from well-known companies on sale: some, for example, have protrusions that help you reach the deepest corners, others have special comfortable handles, others have bristle wear indicators (several of its rows are bright blue: when they will noticeably turn pale - usually after 2 months, it’s time to buy a new one). But if you weren't able to purchase these special brushes, don't worry. You can thoroughly brush your teeth with regular bristles (this model is called classic). The main thing is not to be lazy!

Surprise 4. But what you definitely need to pay attention to is the stiffness of the bristles. Only soft and medium hardness are suitable for children, and the younger the child, the softer the brush should be. Branded packaging usually indicates the age for which it is intended.

Surprise 5. They start brushing their teeth with a special children's toothpaste at 1.5 years of age; from 2 years of age, you can use fluoride-containing pastes or gels (they have a more delicate base, suitable for baby teeth). The paste needs to be squeezed out not with a fatty sausage, which looks so tempting in advertising videos, but with just the nail of a child’s little finger, and even less at first. Children tend to swallow it, which is not at all good for the stomach. But isn't it enough to be surprised?

Let's move on to practical recommendations.

When choosing children's toothpaste, give preference to well-known, reputable companies - almost all of them are involved in television advertising. As a rule, the inscriptions on the packaging are made in Russian; in one of the corners it is indicated that the contents were tested in one of the Russian dental centers.

Please note: companies have branches in different countries. In any of them (German, Polish, Indonesian), pastes are made using the same technology and from the same components. The difference is in price (and sometimes quite significant). And in recent years, domestic factories have begun to produce good toothpastes with a soft base that does not erase enamel and containing active fluoride.

Under no circumstances should you use whitening pastes on children without a doctor’s recommendation! They are intended for adults (and not for everyone) and are too strong for children's teeth.

In general, a change in the color of a child’s tooth enamel is a reason to visit the dentist: this may be a manifestation of caries or some other disease.

When you bring your child to the dentist, do not hesitate to ask questions about proper oral care. And remember: only a specialist who has examined your baby’s teeth can answer them comprehensively. For example, if your gums are inflamed or bleeding, your doctor may advise alternating a fluoride-containing paste with an anti-inflammatory one, prescribe rinses, procedures, or may consider it necessary to coat the tooth with a special protective varnish or sealant that protects deep depressions on the chewing surface. Every child's teeth are unique, just like him or her, and what works for one may not work for another.