FLOSSING IS AN ESSENTIAL part of keeping our teeth clean and healthy. So how do we pass this crucial habit on to our children? This is one hurdle of parenting we’re happy to help you clear! Why Does Flossing Matter? You might wonder why it’s so important to include flossing when it’s hard enough to get your children to brush. Keeping baby teeth healthy is crucial because they are placeholders for adult teeth, and a toothbrush alone simply cannot get rid of all the decay-causing plaque lurking in between them. Just as important is that the earlier children learn good dental hygiene habits, the easier it will be for them to continue those habits into their teens and adulthood. When To Start Flossing Your child probably won’t have the dexterity to floss their [...]

THE EXCITEMENT OF LOSING a tooth and waiting for the Tooth Fairy to come is something almost every child looks forward to, but how can parents make sure this rite of passage lives up to the hype? If you’ve been looking for ways to improve your Tooth Fairy game, we have a few ideas you could use! The Tooth Fairy’s Origins The idea of a fairy who quietly swaps a child’s tooth for money or a small gift overnight isn’t a very old one, but there have been traditions associated with children losing their first tooth since the time of the Vikings, when the teeth were often buried to ensure a happy life for the child or considered good luck in battle. These days, many cultures have the Tooth Fairy or a [...]

WE ALL KNOW WHAT it’s like to have a cold, with a nose so stuffy that you can’t breathe through it. At times like that, we breathe through our mouths instead, and that’s pretty much how it should work. Mouth-breathing is an emergency backup, not the default. There are many negative effects of mouth-breathing full-time, particularly if the habit begins in childhood. Why Does Mouth-Breathing Become A Habit? Many things can lead to a mouth-breathing habit. A small child might get a cold and then simply continue breathing through his mouth when his nose clears. A problem with bite alignment can make it difficult to keep the mouth closed. Persistent allergies, overlarge tonsils, or a deviated septum could make nose-breathing difficult or impossible most of the time. Fortunately, these problems can often [...]

SOMETIMES, BEDTIME CAN BE a real struggle, and a bottle might seem like an easy solution. Unfortunately, putting a baby to bed with a bottle of milk or juice does more harm than good, because the easier bedtime comes at the expense of the baby’s oral health. Keeping those baby teeth healthy is crucial so that the adult teeth will have a better chance of coming in straight. What Is Bottle Rot? Prolonged exposure to the sugars in milk or juice erodes the enamel on a baby or toddler’s teeth, particularly the central incisors. If you’ve ever heard of the phrase “baby bottle tooth decay” or the more sinister-sounding “bottle rot,” this is what it refers to, and it’s definitely something to avoid. It can also happen with sippy cups and even breastfeeding! If [...]