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Dental problems with children are trying for parents and for the child. The time-honored remedies of brushing with fluoride toothpaste and diet are still the corner stones of excellent dental health. Said with "tongue in cheek" parents should brush their children's teeth until the child joins the Marine Corp or gets married! Then their drill instructor or spouse can take over!

Food for thought.

Children lack the motivation, coordination, understanding, and commitment to brush twice daily, everyday! This is a fact. Children and adults are victims of dental disease, so to ask a child to be responsible for their dental care is presumptuous. Parents who are committed to brushing their children's teeth twice a day with fluoride toothpaste, who seek professional care with cleanings and fluoride on regular intervals, and who restrict sugar in the child's daily diet, have families with few if any dental maladies. As with most success's in a child's life, the foundation begins at home.

What preparation should occur prior to a child's initial dental visit? Children's perceptions are different than those of adults. They have a vivid imagination and they have an innocence that invites trust. Children cannot intimately relate to adult experiences through discussion. They do best when their dental experience is uncluttered from others opinions and counsel which can create anxiety and apprehension.

For example, a child's first visit to a supermarket could be tainted with descriptions of frozen cut up animals, cans stacked high overhead that might fall, four wheeled carts that could run over small people, and so on. Someone could unwittingly tarnish a child's initial dental experience by inadvertently using "words" and "descriptions" that would be alarming to a child's imagination.

A good suggestion is to treat the dental visit no different than a trip to the mall. The parent should show confidence, enthusiasm, and trust. If questions arise from the child, it's best to have simple, brief answers and to suggest that the child be sure to ask their dentist the questions because he/she loves to answer questions. The goal is to create a wonderful, dental experience for the child that can be built upon and can lead to a positive attitude about dental care.

Vancouver Pediatric Dentistry
Dentistry for children exclusively
Drs. Lubisich