All About Dental Health and Dental Care in Babies!

1- What is good for toothache in babies?

The pressure of the newly emerging teeth on the gums causes toothache in babies . Since teething is a natural process, babies should be tried to be relaxed at home with natural methods as much as possible.

In this process, one of the things that mothers are most curious about is the question of how to get rid of toothache in babies . After washing your hands thoroughly, you can gently massage the baby’s gums with circular movements with your fingers or with a clean cloth kept in the refrigerator.

You can give the teethers cooled in the refrigerator or foods cut in the form of fingers (for example, cucumber, carrot, spring onion, celery stalk) to babies under parental control, so that the baby can scratch their gums with them.

The important thing at this point is whether the teethers are taken directly from the freezer or not. Drinking cold water in a bottle, provided that it is not ice cold, can also relax the baby.

You can use a pain reliever syrup that your pediatrician will prescribe for very severe pain, especially in cases that constantly interrupt their sleep at night and cause babies to be very restless during the day.

It is not recommended to use gels that are sold in pharmacies and contain topical anesthetics in babies. These gels can cause seizures, brain damage and heart problems if accidentally swallowed by babies. If such gels are to be used, only those with 100% natural content should be preferred.

2- How many degrees should the teeth fever be in babies?

Body temperature may rise in babies due to teething, but it does not exceed 37 degrees. If the fever exceeds 38 degrees during the teething period, another reason should be sought and the pediatrician should be consulted.

3- What causes teeth grinding problems in babies?

During the eruption period, the teeth that try to drive under the gums put pressure on the gums and can stimulate the nerves and chewing muscles here.

Babies also want to reduce their itching to a minimum by chewing their palate. Since the teeth are constantly in motion until they reach the place where they should be in the mouth while they are erupting, the constant change in the closing relations of the teeth can also cause teeth grinding in infancy. Children who grind their teeth due to teething can make it a habit because they do this at night while lying down and during the day.

In addition, teeth grinding may have causes such as stress, reflux, sinusitis, post-nasal drip, intestinal parasites, endocrine disorders, allergies, trauma to the head and neck region. If the grinding does not go away after the teeth erupt, the reason should be determined by a specialist examination and the causative factor should be eliminated.

4- What causes bleeding gums in babies?

Objects that babies take to their mouths can cause damage to the gums, or a hard object or food that comes to the part of the tooth during the eruption period may cause local bleeding in babies .

Sharp or sharp objects should not be left around babies. For example, babies can also damage their gums by putting wet wipes with sharp edges in their mouths.

In such cases, nothing is done unless the bleeding is very severe. Cold water can be drunk. Since the underlying cause of widespread and severe bleeding may be a systemic disease, a pediatrician should be consulted immediately.

5- What causes gingivitis in babies?

During teething, a blue-purple eruption cyst can be seen on the gingiva. There may be swelling and pain in the mouth in that area. In such a case, a cold, clean cloth is wrapped around the finger and massaged and relaxed. The baby is given cold teethers.

When there is a widespread and red inflammation in the gums or swelling on the cheek, the dentist should be examined and the underlying cause should be resolved.

So what is good for gingivitis in babies? If medicine is to be used, a medicine prescribed by the dentist or pediatrician should be used. In cases of very severe inflammation, this inflammation may be carried to other organs of the body and may not pass without the use of antibiotics.

6- How should dental care for babies be?

Before the teeth erupt, the gums and palate of babies should be wiped once a day with a clean damp gauze and cheesecloth.

From the moment the tip of the first tooth appears in the mouth, the teeth should be wiped with the help of a wet clean cloth or cheesecloth that the mother wraps around her finger every night before going to sleep, and the remaining food or breast milk residues on the tooth surface should be removed.

As the teeth erupt and appear in the mouth, finger brushes can be used for oral care in babies. Since the finger brush is attached to the mother’s finger and is elastic, it helps to clean the teeth more easily. At the same time, while the mother is cleaning her teeth in the morning and evening, she also massages the itchy palate of the baby during teething. The important point here is that all surfaces of the teeth are removed from residues.

Teeth should be cleaned twice a day. But the most important thing is dental care without sleeping at night. Because the decreased saliva flow and night feeding make the teeth vulnerable to acid attacks and prepare the ground for dental caries.

Teeth cleaning of babies should be started from the first tooth eruption and should be done by the parents until a child learns to tie shoes, that is, until the age of 7-8, or if he is brushing his own teeth, it should be checked afterwards.

7- How should babies gain dental care habits?

It is necessary to establish a routine of brushing teeth in babies. It is ideal to brush your teeth before going to sleep every night and in the morning after breakfast.

The baby may object from time to time, and may not brush his teeth at all when he is cranky or sometimes when he does not want to. In such cases, it is trying to clean his teeth by keeping him busy with games and stories, explaining why you need to brush his teeth.

For example, you can count the foods he consumes during the day while brushing his teeth. It’s like, ‘Look, there’s a piece of bread left here, there’s some milk here, let’s clean it up’.

If you brush with your baby while brushing teeth, and if he sees you doing it during the day, he will want to imitate you after a while.

You can give children toothbrushes with handles in their hands. Your baby will learn and get used to brushing and brushing and trying to do it himself.

After the age of 1, you can reinforce the habit by telling stories and telling that children in fairy tales brush their teeth.

For children older than 2 years old, you can make brushing more enjoyable by obtaining toothbrushes with their favorite characters.

In addition, if you use an hourglass while brushing teeth, this will both attract your child’s attention and help him brush for a sufficient time.

8- How to choose a baby toothbrush?

After teeth cleaning in babies starts to erupt in the mouth, parents can start using finger brushes.

After the back teeth start to erupt, a brush with a handle, easily bendable, soft and nylon bristles, and a brush head suitable for the child’s mouth size should be selected.

The month and age range is written on the brushes. It would be appropriate to choose your brush according to this range.

It would be appropriate to make sure that the handle of the brush is in a way that your child can easily grasp.

If you brush your teeth enthusiastically at first and get bored after a while, you can get a brush with the figures you love on it.

Brushes with flashing lights can be used for a certain period of time.

Battery-powered or electric toothbrushes can also be used for children over 2 years of age to enjoy brushing and brush their teeth more effectively. The heads of battery or electric toothbrushes rotate and clean the teeth with circular movements. It is enough just to hold it on the teeth.

Toothbrushes should be changed every 3 months or when their bristles are deformed. Head parts of rotating brushes should also be changed during this period. Sometimes children chew their toothbrushes and deform them in a very short time. In such cases, it may be necessary to replace it sooner.

9- How to choose baby toothpaste?

Baby toothpastes should not contain artificial dyes, preservatives, parabens and fluoride. When choosing a paste for their babies, mothers should definitely read and buy the content.

Unfortunately, almost most of the 0-6 year old toothpastes sold in the market and referred to as baby toothpaste contain parabens.

If there is no cavities in babies, they should only be cleaned with water and a toothbrush until 3 years old or until they learn to spit.

During this period, if the mother absolutely wants to use toothpaste, she can brush her baby’s teeth with organic toothpaste or use the toothpaste called tooth mousse, which is used as a swab.

After learning to spit, brushing should be done with a toothpaste containing the appropriate amount of fluoride. This amount is generally between 500-1000 ppm. However, it would be best for your pediatric dentist to prescribe the most suitable toothpaste for your child, after examining your child, according to his/her caries susceptibility.