From Dr.Bojana Aboud: All of the Dental Facts that you should know for your baby!

Dear Panda Kids & Baby familie, we are so honoured to invite Dr. Bojana Aboud from Box Hill South Dental to provide some information and answer questions about Chidren's oral health and dentistry.

With both a Doctor of Dental Surgery from the University of Melbourne, and a Bachelor of Pharmacy from Monash University, Dr.Aboud is not only a highly skilled and experienced Dentist, but she is also an expert in medicines.

Hello Panda Kids community, my name is Dr Bojana Aboud and I am a dentist based out of Box Hill South Dental. I wanted to contribute to this Panda Kids blog and help answer some questions about children’s oral health and dentistry. I have three little kids of my own, so I know how difficult it can be to take care of their dental health and control all of those sweet things they eat! As a dentist, I see lots of young children and always aim to make it a fun and positive experience.

At what age should parents start paying attention to their child’s dental health, and why is it important from such an early stage?

Children all get their first teeth (milk teeth) at varying ages. Most start from six months of age. This is when we should start caring for them! Believe it or not, milk teeth are incredibly important. Their purpose is to help children speak and enunciate words, chew food, have social self-esteem and they act as a guide for where the adult teeth should go. If children lose these milk teeth early due to decay or infection, it has detrimental effects to their health and the future of their adult teeth.For infants, what is the best way to take care of their gums and first teeth?

The best place to start is gentle brushing with an age-appropriate toothbrush, with no fluoride toothpastes until they’re about three years old. There are non-fluoridated toothpastes available for younger kids we can use to get them used to the process and flavours. Some children would also like to do this on their own as a form of sensory satisfaction. This is great, as it predisposes the child to accepting oral hygiene practises when they’re a little older. What does an ideal daily dental care routine look like for babies and young children (frequency and duration)?

Babies and young children are less at risk of dental decay, as they’re hopefully not consuming much sugar and no refined sugar at all. So, brushing their teeth once a day, well, is usually sufficient. We encourage night brushing; this way we can brush away all their food and plaque from the day. It should be a happy and exciting part of the bedtime routine, aiming for 1-2 minutes of brushing if your toddler has a full set of teeth. I usually brush with my children and sing ‘Happy Birthday’ out loud twice – this gives us plenty of time. If there are only a few teeth, then less time is needed.

At what age should children have their first dental visit?

The Australian Dental Association recommends children have their first dental visit after they get their first tooth or from 12 months on, whichever is earlier. However, unless you have specific concerns regarding your infant’s teeth, it’s unlikely they’ll sit still and cooperate in the dental chair. We suggest that your child accompanies you to your dental visit, or their older siblings, when they are toddlers (over 12 months old). This way, they get a feel for the place and the clinical nature of the dental office. Once they see there’s nothing scary, they put a face to the unknown, it’s much easier to try and get them to have an examination with the dentist. I would expect that a child over two years old would comfortably sit in their parent’s lap or sit in the dental chair independently for at least an exam. In saying that, every child is different!

Are there any special things parents should prepare or keep in mind for a child’s first dental appointment? Do children need psychological preparation beforehand?

As mentioned previously, it is a good idea for the child to get to know the clinic or dental staff prior to coming by coming to observe family members having their treatment. If this is not possible, then letting them read some books or watch some cartoons that have positive reinforcing behaviour regarding one’s first dental visit is great. This takes some of the pressure off. We always offer a really relaxed atmosphere where the child leads the appointment, telling us what their happy to do or not to do. We also reward with praise and often little tokens like stickers or fidget toys.

How should parents choose the right toothbrush and toothpaste for their child?

Oral hygiene tools are really a personal preference; however, it is important to make sure the toothbrush and is age appropriate. For example, many kids’ toothbrushes for over 5 years old have a very large head, hence won’t be suitable for the little mouths of under 5 years old. The toothpastes will always come with a strict age minimum. It’s OK for some older kids to still use the younger kids’ toothpastes for a little longer if needed, because sometimes the older range toothpastes have intense minty flavours.

At what age is it recommended to start using fluoride toothpaste?

The minimum age recommended for fluoride-based toothpastes is 3 years old. This is because most younger children will enjoy the flavour and be inclined to swallow larger amounts of toothpaste. It’s not that fluoride is particularly dangerous, but just like we wouldn’t let our kids have salt straight from the saltshaker we shouldn’t let them eat large amounts of toothpaste!

Many adults now use electric toothbrushes, and there are also kids’ electric toothbrushes available. Can children use electric toothbrushes? Compared with manual toothbrushes, do electric ones actually clean better, or are they unnecessary?

Kids can use electric toothbrushes; however, we really must work out if it’s necessary. Most kids’ electric toothbrushes are not at the same standard as the adult electric ones and are often quite large and bulky. This may be a hinderance to good access in small mouths. Likewise, my only other concern with getting young kids to use electric toothbrushes is it will likely not allow them to learn how to use manual toothbrushes well. If this is the case, they will never be very good at using a manual toothbrush.

From what age can kids start to brush their own teeth independently?

Children should brush their teeth with help till they’re typically between 6 – 8 years old. If they’re younger and want to have a go, they can brush their teeth first and then their parents can check and brush after. It is important that children have supervised brushing up until 7 years old. If they can’t tie a shoelace, they’re probably not ready to start brushing on their own!

From a dental health perspective, is using a straw cup better than a baby bottle when reaching the suitable age?

Straw cups versus baby bottles after the age of 12 months – this is a huge topic of discussion. There are no real downsides to ‘dental’ health per se with using baby bottles. The issues that arise from bottles are that the child using them above 12 months may end up having abnormal drinking and swallowing habits. Sucking on a bottle doesn’t use the same muscles as breastfeeding or encourage the same swallowing patterns. When an infant is old enough, we want to encourage them to use the correct facial and swallowing muscles, which will also contribute to a positive transition to solids. The long-term problem with baby bottles is it can lead to irregular front tooth position; however, this would only result from long term bottle feeding over years. The best method for children to drink, when they can, is a plain cup with no straw or tip.

Since sweets and chocolate are everywhere (especially at birthday parties), at what age can children start having them?

There’s no real defined minimum age where sweets are ‘safe’ or appropriate for children. The longer we delay introducing this into the child’s diet, the better. It is good to teach our children by example, so don’t eat these foods in front of them and try not to have them in the house. If they do get offered at a party, you must discuss with them that this is a treat and only for special occasions if you choose to allow them to have it.

If children eat sweets, what frequency is considered acceptable to avoid cavities? Are there specific foods or snacks that are particularly harmful to children’s teeth?

No amount of refined sugar will ever really be safe for children to eat with respect to tooth decay risk. However, in countries like Australia we are lucky that we have access to fluoridated water and dental products that lowers the risk of tooth decay. We always tell our patients and their families that sweets and sweet drinks are ‘sometimes food’. The main drinks that your child should be drinking are water and unflavoured milk. Anything else is bound to have excessive amounts of sugar and can lead to tooth decay and thus is a ‘sometimes drink’. We encourage these types of sugary foods and drinks to be limited to special occasions or as treats no more than once or twice a week.

After eating sugary foods, is there anything special parents should do or pay extra attention to when brushing their child’s teeth?

If your child consumes sugary foods like lollies or chocolate, it would be great if they could brush their teeth quickly. This would eliminate the sugar before it has a chance to do any damage. Flossing that day is also a good idea. The worst sweets are lollies that last a long time in the mouth – lollypops in particular – because the sugar gets swirled around the mouth for a long time, which is a higher risk of dental decay. In my family, lollypops are a ’never food’.

From your professional perspective, are there any good and reliable online resources or information that the parents could search about dental health for kids?

There are some very good and unbiased sources of information from government and hospital sites. Here are a couple:

https://www.rch.org.au/kidsinfo/fact_sheets/Dental_care/

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/oral-health-resources-children-and-teenagers

Feeling very informative and probably have more questions about your kid's dental care? Book an appointment with Dr.Bojana Aboud today to see what she could help you out there!

Box Hill South Dental

Address: 204 Elgar Rd, Box Hill South, VIC, 3128

Contact: 03 9808 1735

Opening Hours: 

Mon - Thu: 9:00am to 5:00pm
Fri: 9:00am to 4:00pm
Sat: By appointment

Book an Appointment Here!