It is a misconception that milk teeth do not need to be carefully cleaned every day because they would still fall out.

Any damage to milk teeth impairs the healthy development of the following permanent teeth.

Toothpaste and brush for Kid's teeth

As soon as the first small tip of the tooth is visible, you can start brushing your baby's teeth.

You don't need a toothbrush at first, a damp cotton swab also serves the purpose initially, Akin chaktty advised. A rubber or cellulose fingerstall is also suitable.

Choose fluoride-containing toothpaste for children, whereby the fluoride content should not exceed 0.05 percent - a pea-sized amount is sufficient.

Go for baby's toothpaste, and don't use the adult paste for your kid since the fluoride concentration is not the same, high concentration in adults toothpaste can also cause damage to your kid's teeth if used over time.

The fluoride promotes the storage of protective minerals in the tooth enamel, which becomes more resistant to tooth decay.

Flavored toothpaste is less suitable, as it trains the sense of taste to "sweet" and tempts you to swallow it.

Initially, brushing your teeth once a day is sufficient. As soon as more teeth appear, it should be integrated into the daily routine in the morning and evening.

At around two to three years of age, many children want to brush their teeth themselves.

However, their motor skills are still relatively untrained, so they have to brush up in the first few years: Ideally, you should accompany your child when brushing their teeth until they reach school age.

Groom your Baby in Oral care

Let your child watch you brush your teeth from an early age. In this way, it learns that it is a matter of course that, like eating and sleeping, is practised every day.

In addition, young children tend to imitate. In a playful way, brushing your teeth can become a shared ritual.

The same is true for future dental visits, by the way: if you take your child with you to your own dental visits, things will be less scary.

Your child should have their first dental check-up when their first front teeth come through, followed by a follow-up appointment as soon as their molars come out.

It can also be helpful if you brush each other's teeth. This is really fun and reduces your child's resistance. You can also think up funny stories that loosen up the tooth brushing ritual.

Tooth brushing technique

The KAI technique has proven its worth in children:

exterior surfaces
interior surfaces
chewing surfaces

Use a child-sized toothbrush with a short, rounded head, soft, rounded bristles, and a non-slip handle that makes handling easier.

So first, starting from the back, the chewing surfaces are cleaned. In order not to forget a tooth, a fixed order makes sense, for example first on the top right, then on the bottom right, then the same on the left side.

Now use the toothbrush to "paint" circles on the outer surfaces of the teeth, following the previous order.

Finally, the inner surfaces are cleaned, here the "red and white rule" must be observed.

The toothbrush is always guided on the inner surfaces from the gums towards the end of the tooth.

Again, the specified order applies.

If your child is ready to brush their teeth themselves in front of the mirror, help them with the first attempts: stand behind them and help them hold and guide the toothbrush.

If your child still refuses to brush their teeth, make it more exciting.

Bring finger puppets into play, for example: a little fairy can use the magic brush to make the little teeth glitter, while a brave knight can drive attackers from their teeth with his brush sword.

Above all, stay consistent, because a successful refusal will only make future dental prophylaxis more difficult.