My Ask Charlie top tips for teeth & mouth health! How to encourage your children to maintain their oral hygiene...

I believe it is very, very important to have great mouth and tooth hygiene from an early age.

This week I’d like to show you my top tips for encouraging your children to really take charge of their oral hygiene. This includes some visual aids in the form of good old fashioned disclosing tablets, mouth-specific brush heads and the correct way to ensure every tooth is cleaned!

Disclosing Tablets

I used to use these as a child, and find they are so fantastic to really show the ‘dirty’ bits of the mouth that need tackling during the brushing session. They show you where the plaque is on the teeth, normally turning a bright pink colour. The children simply pop the tablet into their mouths (be sure to follow the instructions on the packet) and spit them out after a little while. They then take a good look at the areas that have turned pink, and then brush it all off!

They work so incredibly well in encouraging the children to brush, and brush properly!

Electric Toothbrushes

My children use electric toothbrushes, all with the circular head attached. I find that the circular heads are kinder on gums than the ones shaped like the standard toothbrush. They work in circular motions to deeply clean and also massage the gums to really get them clean where they meet the tooth, and also increase blood flow to the tooth bringing lots of goodness with it! It ensures good protection against gum disease and hidden plaque.

Specific Toothbrush Heads

The bottom of Archie’s mouth is quite crowded, so we use a specific brush head to get right in-between the teeth and ensure a good clean.

Toothpaste

Gussie is not a fan of mint toothpaste at all, so we use both Jack N’ Jill Strawberry Toothpaste and Sensodyne Pronamel.

Jack N’ Jill contains no fluoride, SLS, parabens, GMO ingredients, colours, sugar or artificial preservatives and are a cruelty free company. They also use recycled and natural materials such as corn starch and bamboo instead of plastics! I highly recommend checking them out if your children are struggling with mint toothpaste!

Sensodyne Pronamel is recommended by dentists the world over and strengthens teeth by re-mineralising weakened enamel, penetrating deep into the tooth.

Flossing

It is important to know that children without their adult teeth shouldn’t floss daily. Once they’re ready, flossing should be encouraged at least once a day, as bacterial plaque and food can settle between teeth that touch.

The Cleaning Process

You should spend 5 seconds on every tooth before moving onto the next one. This ensures each tooth gets a really thorough clean on the front, back, top and sides! It also makes sure the gum below gets a good massage too. I like to ask my children to look into the mirror as they brush so they can see the teeth they’re tackling!

Supervision

Once a day, normally in the evening, I like to make time to stay with the children whilst they brush their teeth. This just ensures they’re doing a proper job!

Lastly

Do not encourage your child to rinse the toothpaste from their mouths. The toothpaste should be spat out, mouth wiped and that’s it! Any remaining toothpaste will still be getting to work on keeping their mouths healthy, so should be left alone.

I hope you’ve found this helpful! Do let me know if you have any teeth-cleaning tips of your own!

Love,