We understand that all children are small adults, and all procedures need to be explained simply and in their language. With this in mind, their journey from the waiting room through to the surgery is soft and caring. At Centre For Smile, we want to help you and your child look after those precious teeth right up to adulthood. Our specialist team will explain the importance of oral hygiene and prevention along with modern, child-friendly, conservative treatment procedures. We work carefully with a general dentist and an orthodontist ensuring your child’s dental needs are addressed at all stages of their development.

Oral health education: does responsibility lie with schools or parents?

Oral health and looking after teeth is ultimately education driven and as a parent, if you bring a child into this world you are responsible for them. If parents are motivated and knowledgeable about how to brush and care for their teeth, the children will be too. Today’s world is busy, but parents should be spending a little bit more time with their children and taking them through the correct methods to look after their teeth. Tooth decay is fundamentally related to two things: brushing teeth and diet.

Firstly, children should be educated on the importance of brushing in the morning and evening for two minutes. Parents need to motivate their children and make it fun whilst setting and demonstrating clear guidelines. Children don’t have the manual dexterity to adequately do this on their own until the age of 6, so prior to this parents should be supervising teeth brushing. It is good to give children responsibility but unfortunately, if left to their own devices without parental support, they will often be leaving plaque, bacteria and food debris in the mouth.

The second aspect is diet, which is related to discipline. We always talk about limiting sugar intake to meal times and not snacking on sugary foods – parents can designate a ‘sweetie day’ where children have treats once a week. It is also very important that parents don’t pass on their fears of the dentist. Years ago it might have hurt to have a filling but dentistry has come on leaps and bounds and nowadays there is no excuse for avoiding the dentist. Not only will their children end up having their teeth for longer and the benefits of that, they will also have an education and that is a legacy they will pass onto the next generation. The children respond very positively to an outside expert rather than just their teacher or parent telling them and the class forum encourages interaction amongst the children. It also serves as an insight into dentistry as a possible career for children. To conclude, education starts at home and if parents supervise the ways their children brush their teeth from a young age, they will reap the benefits in later life. As a parent, you have a duty and the responsibility of reinforcing the importance of brushing, whilst limiting the amount of sugar in their children’s diet.