DENTAL HEALTH
Once your baby’s first milk tooth breaks through, it’s time to start showing them good dental hygiene. It’s important for your child to have healthy teeth. They help them eat, speak, and smile confidently. Milk teeth also help to align and space their permanent teeth. You can help your little one maintain a lifetime of healthy smiles by teaching them good dental habits, such as regular brushing and not eating or drinking too much sugar.
A key point to highlight is that cutting down on sugar is important for keeping children’s teeth healthy. Fizzy drinks, soft drinks, juice drinks and sugary squashes can all lead to tooth decay.
The best drink for your child is unflavoured milk or water. Check out our page on food and drinks to avoid for more information.
0-3 and Pregnant Women Top Tips for Teeth Leaflet
Hormonal changes can cause swollen and bleeding gums (pregnancy gingivitis). Don’t stop brushing if your gums bleed; continue with good oral hygiene and see your dentist for advice and a professional clean.
Pregnancy – Best Start in Life – NHS
A new and updated set of children’s oral health ‘Top Tips for Teeth’ resources are now available to support dental professionals, Health care professionals and those working in Early Years settings to encourage parents and carers to help teach children good oral health. The resources aim to raise awareness and provide instruction for good oral hygiene in children aged 0-3, 3+ and pregnant women, and address the impact of poor dental health. Parents and carers can also find new content with tips and advice on the Start for Life website.
A range of free downloadable and orderable resources, that can be used in dental practices, hospitals, Family Hubs, children’s centres and other Early Years settings, are available to partners on the Campaign Resource Centre, including:
- Social media toolkit
- Posters (including empty belly version for partners to add local service information)
- Digital screens
- ‘Top Tips for Teeth’ Leaflets
Editorial copy
Related website
https://www.nhs.uk/start-for-life/how-to-take-care-of-your-baby-or-toddlers-teeth/
Overview
The Better Health Start for Life Top Tips for Teeth resources are designed to support dental professionals, health care professionals, early years professionals and those working with families and young children to encourage parents and carers to teach children good oral health, as well as make pregnant women aware of the additional dental support they can access.
There are various printed and digital materials available to partners, including posters, leaflets, digital screens and social media toolkit. Resources signpost to online support tools and available on the Start for Life websites.
Good oral health is very important for a child’s growth and can affect their health. Starting good tooth brushing habits early can help prevent tooth decay and other problems later on. The Top Tips for Teeth resources encourage parents to start taking care of their child’s teeth as soon as the first tooth comes in, which usually happens around six months old.
The resources also advise parents to avoid giving their children sugary drinks, as these can lead to tooth decay. As children grow, it’s important to encourage them to spit out toothpaste instead of rinsing with water. Rinsing washes away the fluoride, which helps protect their teeth and keep them healthy.
The Start for Life Dental Hygiene guide is available to support parents in caring for their baby’s teeth. This digital support tool offers NHS-endorsed advice, and practical tips on maintaining good oral health.
The key messages grouped for 0-3 and pregnant women are:
- “Say goodbye to the bottle” which is about introducing free-flow cups
- “Protect their smile” which is a reminder for free NHS dental checks for under 18s
- “Twice a day” which is to encourage brushing your teeth twice a day
- “No need to rinse” which is to encourage children to spit not rinse as they get older
- “Avoid giving fruit juice and squash” which is about preventing tooth decay.
- “Skip the sugar” which is about avoiding food and drinks with too much sugar
- “Pregnancy smile” which is to inform pregnant women of available services
The key messages for children 3+ are:
“Skip the sugar” which is about avoiding food and drinks with too much sugar
“Twice a day” which is to encourage brushing your teeth twice a day
“Protect their smile” which is a reminder for free NHS dental checks for under 18s
“Encourage them to spit not rinse” which is to encourage children to spit not rinse as they get older