Caring for new teeth: Tooth decay

• If the milk teeth decay, it may affect permanent teeth too, so dental care is very important. Sweet foods and drinks sticking to the teeth is one of the main causes of dental decay. A child should clean his teeth after all meals.
• Encourage him to drink water and non-sweetened natural teas as first-choice beverages, and always dilute fruit juices. Remember, setting an example is very important and will make your job much easier.
• Although fruit is healthy and nutritious, it's high in sugar. Parents shouldn't think damage will not be caused to teeth if they are not brushed after a child has eaten fruit. The same applies to honey and molasses.
• Snacking is an important component of toddler nutrition and is a dilemma with regard to dental hygiene. Encourage your child to swirl and rinse water in his mouth to remove most of the food particles. Toddlers enjoy doing this too.
• Iced teas that are flavoured with a bit of diluted fruit juice go down well and are certainly less problematic for your child's teeth. But what about those drinks that help your toddler fall asleep at night? Not only can the contents be a problem, but also the length of time your child's teeth are exposed to the constant irrigation of sweet liquid.
• Encourage the intake of non-sweetened drinks and make sure your toddler doesn't sleep with the bottle constantly in his mouth. This is easier said than done, but do try.
• Suckling may be vital to your child's emotional well-being – and I am of the opinion that you can more easily 'mend' a set of teeth than a broken heart. Do the very best you can, but don't worry too much about dental decay if you take the tips given to heart.

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