Maintaining hygiene is one of the most important factors for maintaining kids’ health. Not only, physical hygiene, but, dental and oral hygiene is also important. The first and the foremost thing which is important for oral hygiene is using a good toothbrush for your little munchkin. As new parents, we all wonder about at what age should we start using a toothbrush for our kids, which is the best quality toothbrush to use, and a lot more questions crowd our minds as new parents. Whether we should use a hard toothbrush or a soft one and which brand toothbrush is good for our babies. These are some of the questions that come to our mind. So, here is all you want to know about using a baby toothbrush.
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When to start cleaning my baby’s teeth and gums?
Pediatrician’s advice to clean the baby’s gums after feeding. The main reason behind this is that the babies start teething at the age of 4 to 6 months. At that time their gums become swollen and red. The saliva flow also increases during that time, and the child is in a lot of pain. So, the child tends to put anything and everything in their mouth, which will lead to a lot of germs build-up.
In addition to that when the child is feeding, the feed may stick to the gums of the teeth and will increase more bacterial and germ buildup in the mouth which will eventually lead up to infection in the teeth and teeth decay. Hence, you should start cleaning your baby’s gums at around 4 to 6 months of age. For that, as per a pediatric dentist’s advice, you need to clean your baby’s gums with a warm sterilized damp cloth or a silicone finger toothbrush.
You can start brushing your baby’s teeth as soon as the first one erupts. Pediatric dentists advise you to use a toothbrush that is moistened with water, which has no more than three rows of bristles and whose bristles are soft by touch. The pharmacist at the drug store will help you find out the suitable toothbrush or silicone finger brush. At 18 months of age start using a pea-sized low fluoride or fluoride less toothpaste and encourage your kid to learn to spit out the paste. Also, make sure that you throw away all the brushes that have become hard on the sides, and which are more than 4 months used. This is because the older brushes are a favorable environment for bacterial to grow in them and plaque to buildup in the brushes. You should make a point to clean your baby’s teeth twice a day.
Even if the child is one or two years old and can hold the toothbrush in his or her hand, adult supervision is always necessary until the age of 7 to 8 years. Then you can teach your kid to brush their teeth on their own. There is a particular method to brush your child’s teeth. Do follow the pattern.
The don’ts to avoid tooth decay in babies
The first and foremost thing is not to give a lot of sugary products like sweets, cookies, and ice cream to the kids. Also, there are chances of baby bottle teeth decay in kids. In order to avoid that take the following steps
- Do not allow the kid to use the baby bottle as a pacifier
- Do not feed the kid directly before bedtime and naptime
- Do not feed frequently for a long period.
Types of baby toothbrush
Different types of baby toothbrushes are used at different stages. These toothbrushes are as follows
- Silicone grade finger toothbrush
- Soft bristle toothbrush for toddlers
- Automatic toothbrushes for kids
Silicone grade finger toothbrush
It is made up of 100 percent food-grade silicone that is safe for babies. You can wear this toothbrush on your index finger, so it is known as a finger toothbrush. You can use this toothbrush to clean the baby’s gums after feeding and also to rub and soothe the baby’s gum when he or she is teething.
Soft bristle toothbrush for toddlers
American dental association advises brushing their little one’s teeth with a small toothbrush that has soft bristles and not more than three layers. The brush should fit easily in the child’s mouth and should have a rounded head so that it does not hurt the kid in the mouth. The toothbrush should have easy to hold and have a non-slip grip which makes it easy for the kids to hold the brush and practice brushing on their own.
Electric toothbrushes
Electric toothbrushes are also good perks for kids. They come with the print of cartoon characters and can also play music when on. But, these electronic toothbrushes come with certain age restrictions. The electronic toothbrush cannot be used for children below three years of age.
Baby toothbrush types
There are two main types of the baby toothbrush. They are
- Infant toothbrush
There are different types of infant baby toothbrush. You can read about it more over here.
- Toddler toothbrush
Also, you should keep in mind that there is a difference between an adult electric toothbrush and the one for kids. The companies manufacturing them have different models. You can visit their site and collect more information on it. Also, if you want to know more about electronic toothbrushes you should buy the one with ADA seal and check their site for relevant information.
So, this is all you want to know about the baby toothbrush, how to use them, and different types of toothbrushes. Please share your input with us in the comments section.
Last update on 2024-08-15 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API