BACK TO SCHOOL WITH A HEALTHY SMILE

It’s that time of the year again, back to school! This means children will be back to their busy schedules, spending most of their day away from us at school. A healthy smile is what all parents want for their children, and once children are in school it’s hard to supervise their every habit. This is why it is important to establish proper oral health habits at home first! 

Read below for 5 Oral Health tips for all parents with children going back to school:

1. Book a Dental Check-up and Professional Cleaning

• Good way to start the school year knowing your child is cavity free

• A clean set of teeth will keep bad breath and dental pain away

• It’s always harder to find time to go to the dentist once school gets parents and kids busy

2. Routines are Key

• Good way to start the school year knowing your child is cavity free

• A clean set of teeth will keep bad breath and dental pain away

• It’s always harder to find time to go to the dentist once school gets parents and kids busy

3. Healthy Lunches and Snacks

• Pack water instead of juices and soft drinks

• Healthier snack options include: cheese, yogurt, veggies, fruits, nuts

• Avoid packing sticky & sweet foods

4. Brushing & Flossing Habits

• Brushing before school and then again before bed-time at night

• 2 minutes of brushing; try using a toy hourglass as a timer

• Help brush, especially the back teeth, for your younger children

• Flossing once a day, preferably before bed, once teeth start touching their neighbours

• Go over brushing technique with children, using a video or an app

5. Mouth Guards to Prevent Injuries

• As your children take part in sports and physical activities it is recommended to have a mouthguard for them

• Dental injuries due to physical activities and sports is more common than we think

• Custom-fit mouthguards are more ideal than the ones found in stores

WHAT IF YOUR CHILD HAS A DENTAL INFECTION?

Dental cavities start on the surface layers, and eventually progress towards the nerve of the tooth. Once the bacteria in a cavity extends from the tooth to the bone around, it will eventually lead to bone damage and an infection of the surrounding gums. Dental infections like these not only happen in adult teeth but also baby teeth! Keep in mind that your child too can suffer from a dental infection, which is not only painful but also affects surrounding tissues and future adult teeth!  

SIGNS OF A DENTAL INFECTION

• A dental infection can occur after a tooth injury or from a deep dental cavity

• Once the bacteria spreads from the tooth to surrounding bone and gums, it will present as a dental abscess (a red pimple like swelling)

• On the X-ray the dentist will be able to see bone destruction

• The dental abscess (pimple) can eventually grow in size and cause a facial swelling, or even further spreading to other areas of the face or throat

• This abscess is pus filled, and sometimes pus can be seen when draining

• Symptoms include a painful tooth, redness and swelling of the face, fever, and in the mouth a pimple-like swelling can be seen on the gum of the tooth in question

TREATMENT FOR A DENTAL INFECTION

• If you notice signs of dental infections in your child’s mouth, immediately take them in to see their dentist

• A visual exam and an x-ray can confirm the presence of a dental infection

• Antibiotics are sometimes required prior to treatment, in order to reduce swelling and spread of the infection

• Infected baby teeth often require extraction

• Untreated dental infections in baby teeth can lead to extensive damage to surrounding tissues and future adult teeth – sometimes even leading to life threatening consequences

HOME MANAGEMENT

• Dental cavities should be prevented with proper hygiene and dietary habits

• Regular dental check-ups and cleanings will allow early detection of dental caries

• Have your child’s dental cavities treated as soon as possible to prevent progression into infections

• Dental pain can be managed with over-the-counter analgesics (Tylenol, Advil)

• While your child is on antibiotics for a dental infection awaiting treatment; maintain proper hygiene in the area, use analgesics for pain, monitor for worsening of the swelling

LET’S HAVE A CAVITY-FREE SUMMER!

SUMMER IS HERE! This means our little ones will be out and about playing under the sun. It’s officially time for cold beverages, frozen treats, and more snacking in general! Most snacks and treats now are full of sugars; the main cause of tooth decay. Read below for some tips you can practice at home to prevent cavities for your young ones!

POPSICLES & FREEZIES

• These are sugared liquids that taste yummy to the child AND the bacteria on our teeth

• Make popsicles at home out of fruits and veggies, rather than store bought

• Have a glass of water or brush teeth after!

JUICES & SPORTS DRINKS

• Full of sugar and acid, these will erode the enamel and cause cavities

• Try to avoid, or have them diluted with water

• Use a straw to consume these

FRUITS

• Fruits are the best summer snack, tasty and refreshing! Find the ones your child enjoys and keep them in the fridge

• Fruits have sugar as well, but having a fruit is better than having a fresh fruit juice

• The crunchier fruits also help in scrubbing the teeth clean during chewing

• Try fruits first rather than other summer snacks

• Can also be used to make fun home-made popsicles

HYDRATE WITH WATER

• Summer is hot, and kids will look for refreshing drinks - always give them water first

• Try to have multiple glasses of water throughout the day

• Use water to dilute other beverages to prevent cavities

TRY LESS SNACKING

• With school being done, kids have less of a diet routine in the summer

• This results in more snacks, and usually most fun snacks cause cavities

• Make fruits, veggies, and cheese as the go to snacks, versus ones containing added sugar

TIPS FOR A HEALTHY HALLOWEEN

Halloween is around the corner, which means costumes, jack-o-lanterns and a stockpile of sweets for the winter. It’s not a surprise that Halloween can present parents with a variety of health and safety challenges. The good news is it’s okay to eat that candy but it’s important to have a plan.

Here's some tips how you can help your families oral health on Halloween and year-round.

Time It Right

Eat Halloween candy (and other sugary foods) with meals or shortly after mealtime. Saliva production increases during meals. This helps cancel out acids produced by bacteria in your mouth and rinse away food particles.

Stay Away from Sweet Snacks

Snacking can increase your risk of cavities, and it’s double the trouble if you keep grabbing sugary treats from the candy bowl.

Choose Candy Carefully

Avoid hard candy and other sweets that stay in your mouth for a long time. Aside from how often you snack, the length of time sugary food is in your mouth plays a role in tooth decay. Unless it is a sugar-free product, candies that stay in the mouth for a long period of time subject teeth to an increased risk for tooth decay.

Avoid Sticky Situations

Sticky candies cling to your teeth. The stickier candies, like taffy and gummy bears, take longer to get washed away by saliva, increasing the risk for tooth decay.

Drink More Water

Drinking fluoridated water can help prevent tooth decay. If you choose bottled water, look for kinds that are fluoridated.

Maintain a Healthy Diet

Your body is like a complex machine. The foods you choose as fuel and how often you "fill up" affect your general health and that of your teeth and gums.

Stay Away from Sugary Beverages

This includes soda, sports drinks and flavoured waters. When teeth come in frequent contact with beverages that contain sugar, the risk of tooth decay is increased.

Chew Gum with the ADA Seal

Chewing sugarless gum for 20 minutes after meals helps reduce tooth decay, because increased saliva flow helps wash out food and neutralize the acid produced by bacteria. You might even want to think about giving sugarless gum out as a treat instead of candy.

Brush Twice a Day

Brush your teeth twice a day for two minutes with an ADA-accepted fluoride toothpaste. Remember, replace your toothbrush every three or four months, or sooner if the bristles are frayed. A worn toothbrush won't do a good job of cleaning your teeth.

Clean Between Your Teeth

Floss your teeth once a day. Decay-causing bacteria get between teeth where toothbrush bristles can't reach. Flossing helps remove plaque and food particles from between the teeth and under the gum line.

Visit a Dentist Regularly

Regular visits to your dentist can help prevent problems from occurring and catch those that do occur early, when they are easy to "treat." You may also consider a dentist who specializes in treating children as they may have additional training and experience in caring for young patients.

ORAL HEALTH OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL HEALTH CARE NEEDS

Approximately 9.3 American million children (nearly 13%) have special health care needs, including developmental disorders, systemic disorders and sensory impairments. These children have more oral disease and greater unmet dental needs than the general pediatric population. Petrova et al from the University of Minnesota studied the relationship between these children’s level of functioning and their oral health. In addition to giving demographic information, parents of 154 children aged 2 to 16 years completed a 39-question version of the Survey Interview Form of the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales (SIFVABS) designed to measure the children’s level of functioning across 6 domains:

• listening and understanding

• talking

• daily living

• relating to others

• playing and using leisure time

• physical activity

The children’s oral hygiene was evaluated on a 3-point scale (poor, fair, good); their gingival health was evaluated on a 4-point scale (within normal limits, mild gingivitis, moderate gingivitis, severe gingivitis).

Most of the children had ≥1 developmental disorder, with epilepsy/seizure disorder (36%), cerebral palsy (31%) and autism spectrum disorder (25%) the most common. The most frequent systemic health issues included gastroesophageal reflux disease and the presence of a gastrostomy tube (41%), asthma (18%) and cardiovascular disease (13%); 18% of the children had been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity dis-order, while 7% had cleft lip and/or palate.

Higher levels of talking skill correlated with better lev-els of oral hygiene and gingival health. Higher levels of listening and understanding correlated to better parental perception of children’s oral health state and better lev-els of oral hygiene. Children with special health care needs face problems with oral health care as well, including higher levels of dental caries, malocclusion and broken teeth. Education of the parents of these children can help meet their needs.

Petrova EG, Hyman M, Estrella MRP, Inglehart MR. Children with special health care needs: exploring the relation-ships between patients’ level of function-ing, their oral health, and caregivers’ oral health-related responses. Pediatr Dent 2014;36:233-239.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SEALING OUT TOOTH DECAY

The chewing surfaces on the back teeth—the premolars and molars—include numerous depressions and grooves. These indentations, called fissures and pits, help us grind our food into particles small enough to swallow.

Unfortunately, toothbrush bristles cannot get into the smaller fissures and pits to remove tiny bits of food and plaque bacteria that accumulate on the back teeth. This means that even regular brushing and flossing may not be enough to keep those fissures and pits clean.

The result? These bacteria turn the sugars and starches we eat and drink into acids that attack tooth enamel. And that attack can result in tooth decay.

One solution to the problem of cleaning the fissures and pits is the use of dental sealants. Made from a plastic material, sealants are placed over the chewing surfaces of premolars and molars. They protect the tooth surfaces that are the hardest to keep clean and thus are the most susceptible to decay from food and bacteria.

Applying dental sealants is quick and easy. After we perform a thorough cleaning of the tooth, the sealant is placed over the chewing surface of the tooth, where it bonds to the enamel. The sealant typically lasts for several years, protecting the tooth surface from decay. If the sealant shows any signs of deterioration, we simply reapply it.

A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported overwhelming evidence that dental sealants reduce tooth decay in children and adolescents. Ronald L. Tankersley, former president of the American Dental Association, noted, “The two most prevalent dental diseases, dental caries and periodontal disease, are both preventable. The proper use of dental sealants at an early age is an effective tool for preventing dental caries in the most susceptible patients.”

Sealants alone, though, can’t replace good dental care. Twice-daily brushing and flossing, along with regular visits to the dentist, are still the mainstays of everyone’s effort to keep teeth healthy. But sealants add another weapon in the fight against tooth decay.