Proper Brushing & Diet

Proper Brushing & Diet

At Dr Gogia’s Multi-Speciality Dental Care Centre we understand that good oral hygiene and preventive dental care must begin at an early age. We ask parents to register their children at the practice and to encourage regular attendance for check-ups. To help you, we actively involve you and your children in dental education so that the importance of a good dental regime is fully appreciated.

We also understand the children can be very nervous so all of our staff are trained to be particularly sympathetic and sensitive to the needs of our younger patients – we want their visits to us to be as enjoyable and worry-free as possible.

Brushing techniques

You may want to supervise your children until they get the hang of these simple steps:

• Use a pea-sized dab of toothpaste. Take care that your child does not swallow the toothpaste.
• Using a soft-bristled toothbrush, brush the inside surface of each tooth first, where plaque may accumulate most. Brush gently back and forth.
• Clean the outer surfaces of each tooth. Angle the brush along the outer gumline. Gently brush back and forth.
• Brush the chewing surface of each tooth. Gently brush back and forth.
• Use the tip of the brush to clean behind each front tooth, both top and bottom.
• It’s always fun to brush the tongue!

Proper Diet

A balanced diet is necessary for your child to develop strong, decay-resistant teeth. In addition to a full range of vitamins and minerals, a child’s diet should include plenty of calcium, phosphorous, and proper levels of fluoride.

If fluoride is your child’s greatest protection against tooth decay, then frequent snacking may be the biggest enemy. The sugars and starches found in many foods and snacks like cookies, candies, dried fruit, soft drinks, pretzels and potato chips combine with plaque on teeth to create acids. These acids attack the tooth enamel and may lead to cavities.

Each “plaque attack” can last up to 20 minutes after a meal or snack has been finished. Even a little nibble can create plaque acids. So it’s best to limit snacking between meals.