"Oral health for your well-being" presentation for parents and children at BVS (under the leadership of Aki Ediriweera) on January 31, 2016 by Dr. Kumudu Suriya is now on YouTube.

by 

Dr. Kumudu Suriya    

We take our daily food intake through our mouths.  For this reason alone, it is imperative to have good oral heath.

 

If you are an adult, you can take care of your oral health.  The same cannot be expected from our kids.  It is the responsibility of parents to maintain good oral heath of their children.

 

Some parents take a very relaxed approach to taking care of oral health of their babies. However, with simple habits, you can easily improve on oral health of your baby. 

• After each feeding, use a clean cloth to wipe gums and tooth-buds of a newborn.

• When teeth appear, brush your baby’s teeth twice a day with a small soft-bristled toothbrush and water.  Brushing before putting to bed is especially important.

• Do not share toothbrushes or any other utensils such as forks, spoons sippy-cups among family members.

• Lift up your baby’s lip regularly to check for decay, white or brown spots on teeth.

• Never use corn syrup, honey or other sugar products on your baby’s soother.

• If your baby sleeps with a bottle, fill it up only with water.  Also plan to stop the bottle between 18 to 24 months.

• Train your baby to drink from a cup when the baby is able to sit up.

 

There is a range of opinions on what to expect from a toddler.  But, all agree that toddlers cannot be treated as fully independent children.  Toddlers are unable to clean their own teeth properly.  Brush for them.  As they grow older, you can brush with them.  When they are about eight years old, they can brush on their own with your supervision.  Even with older children, you still have to supervise them as the issue is not dexterity, but rather they cut corners with brushing properly or skipping brushing altogether.

 

As British Columbia Dental Association (BCDA) points out, use a tiny smear of fluoride toothpaste and gradually increase it to a small pea-sized amount by age three.  This is especially important given the fact that much of the BC water supply is non-Fluoridated.

 

Brushing needs to be supplemented with flossing.  Focus more on where teeth are touching.  They are the areas that toothbrushes cannot reach.

 

Brushing teeth only is insufficient.  Brush your gums, tongue and other areas of your mouth.

As indicated in my previous articles, what you eat when and how will have an impact on your oral health.  If you have unhealthy habits, it is most likely that your children will learn them from you.  Integrate good in-house oral care into your daily routine. 

 

If you are taking your children to a dentist twice a year for checkups, it is easier to keep up with good oral health.  However, taking children to a dentist can put financial pressure on some parents.  This is especially true for some parents who are new immigrants, parents who have recently lost their jobs and families with relatively insufficient income or disabilities.  There are private and some government-assisted insurance plans such as Healthy Kids plan that can relieve you from this pressure.

 

Make oral health of children an integral part of your family health.

Dr. Kumudu Suriya, BDS (Peradeniya), DMD (UBC), is a dentist who practices in Surrey & New Westminster.  She is a Clinical Instructor at the University of British Columbia and was a lecturer at the University of Peradeniya.  www.dentistry-at-suriya.com/Contact-Us.html

                                                                                                                                April 2014

by 

Dr. Kumudu Wijesinghe Suriya

    

Eating is something we all do on a daily basis.  Our mouths are busy places.  Inside our mouths are also places where there are many tiny organisms live.  Among them, bacteria are the main category.  Not all of these bacteria are harmful.  But, harmful bacteria can be a major problem.  They can attach themselves to surfaces such as the enamel that covers our teeth.  If they are not removed, they will multiply into colonies of bacteria.  When food pieces and residues mixed with saliva (spit) are present, these bacteria create a whitish film on teeth.  This film is commonly known as plaque.  If you let plaque accumulate in your mouth, that could cause cavities in your teeth as well as gum disease.

As long as you understand that what we eat as well as what we leave in our mouths after eating will create problems for us, finding practical solutions is doable.  Changing what people eat may be difficult.  What can be easily done is cleaning our mouths.

(1) You need to flush out food pieces and residues from your mouth.  Each time after eating, drink water.  While drinking, rinse your mouth.

(2) In light of the fact that much of the BC Lower Mainland water supply is non-Fluoridated, it is important to brush your teeth properly with a Fluoridated toothpaste at least two times a day with a soft-bristled toothbrush.  Make sure to clean not just teeth, but also areas such as tongue and gums.

(3) Floss your teeth regularly. A practical strategy is to floss before you go to bed.  Flossing may reach surfaces where brushing cannot reach.

Some of the solutions to oral health are as simple as adhering to proper oral hygiene habits.  It is not something just dentists and other dental professionals alone can do for you.  It is rather something that many of you are able to do for yourselves.  Include in-house oral care into your daily routines.

If you have children, make them a part of your daily routine.  Make sure to use appropriate type of toothpaste so as to be compatible with their age and needs.  The same should be done with senior citizens under your care.  Studies show that family approach to daily oral care works well.

Take charge of your oral health through prevention as it is easier to reduce your chances of needing root canal treatments, tooth extractions, implants and more.

 

Dr. Kumudu Wijesinghe Suriya, BDS (Peradeniya), DMD (UBC), is a dentist who practices in New Westminster & Surrey.

Sri Lanka Times (BC, Canada), August 2012