Anil and Rita are proud parents of a five year old son Aditya. They are both employed and return home late in the evening. After returning from the office Rita completes her house hold chores and helps Aditya to complete his homework .When Aditya takes long to complete his school home work or his meal, she induces Aditya by saying, “Aditya, if you finish your school home work in 15 minutes, you will get an ice cream” or “if you complete your dinner in the next five minutes, you will get your favourite chocolate.” This statement lures Aditya to complete his meal or his homework on time.
Though Aditya completes his meal or homework on time, he learns to bargain and begins to attach different agreements with his actions; secondly and in the context of this article, it may affect his oral health. As a responsible parent you may be concerned that he may be undernourished if he does not eat properly or you may be worried about his academic performance. You may reason out what is the harm in eating a small chocolate once he has completed his entire meal.
After he has finished the chocolate or the ice cream do you bother to check if he has brushed his teeth properly? It has been seen that at most times children feel lazy to brush their teeth or rinse their mouth after a meal. Eventually, they suffer from tooth decay and start complaining about pain.
How does tooth decay occur?
Well known dentist Dr. Jena Shah says, “There are various causes of tooth decay in children, some of them are bottle feeding, breast feeding for more than one year and improper tooth brushing. Since mother’s milk contains lactose, a form of sugar, when allowed to stagnate around the teeth can cause tooth decay. Mothers should clean the gums of the infant with a gauze piece or cotton immediately after breast feeding.”
Tooth decay occurs when foods containing sugars and carbohydrates such as breads, milk, cakes, candies, etc are left on the teeth. Our mouth is full of bacteria that build on the teeth in a sticky layer called Plague. The bacteria in the mouth feed on the sugars in the food that we eat and makes acid. If these acids remain on the tooth surface for a long time, these acids destroy the tooth enamel, resulting in tooth decay.
Dr Jena Shah adds, “Tooth decay can be prevented by using fluoridated tooth paste, tooth brushing twice a day, avoiding bottle feed (try spoon feeding instead) and with regular visit to the dentist preferably once in six months.”
Here are some tips to prevent tooth decay in children:
Ensure that children brush their teeth at least twice a day (once before going to bed and once before breakfast). Brushing the teeth twice a day helps to remove Plaque. Formation of Plaque is the leading cause of tooth decay. The tooth brush should be replaced every three months or when bristles begin to show wear.
- Supervise children while brushing
It is imperative that parents supervise their children (above 2 years) while they brush their teeth. It is important to check that kids use only a small amount of tooth paste (about the size of a pea) on a soft bristled tooth brush. Excessive tooth paste can cause discoloration and mottled teeth. Supervision is also necessary to ensure children do the brushing properly, reaching each tooth and all parts of the mouth.
