You sacrifice so much so that your child can have the best life possible. You happily place your wants and desires in a distant second because that’s what parents do. So, you want to be sure that your bundle of joy has a healthy and happy future. That’s why your children’s dentist wants you to encourage the development of the right habits in your child.
Why it’s Important to Develop Proper Habits in Children
Studies show that your child’s brain is like a huge sponge from the ages of zero to seven. During this time, the foundation is being laid for your child’s emotional, intellectual and physical future. This is also an integral time for habit forming. The habits your child forms in this stage of life will be imprinted into his/her brain, so it must be treated with the utmost care.
Desirable and Undesirable Habits
There are several habits that you want to encourage your child to form involving oral care and food consumption, because the two symbiotically exist.
- Benefits of a Healthy Diet – A healthier diet, which includes unrefined foods and an abundance of fruits and vegetables, will contribute to your child’s optimum oral health. Healthy eating also encourages the proper enzyme balance in saliva, which helps to fight bacteria.
- Diet High in Refined Foods – Conversely, a diet high in refined products and sugar can cause havoc for your child’s teeth, as it encourages more harmful bacteria growth, and can lead to plaque development, which can morph into gum disease.
- Dental Hygiene – Studies show that people who eat poorly are less likely to practice optimum dental hygiene. So, if your child is consuming unhealthy foods it will, more than likely, translate into slacking on his/her oral care and encourage residual negative effects like cavities and gum disease.
- Brushing and Flossing – By providing your child with healthy food and drink options, it will be easier to encourage brushing and flossing twice a day. And this is a key habit to establish in childhood, as it removes hard-to-reach bacteria that hide at the gum line and wreak havoc.
- Visiting the Dentist Twice a Year – This is another very essential habit to instill into your child’s life that will be beneficial well into adulthood. By conditioning him/her to have cleanings and checkups twice a year, it will also positively affect his/her eating and daily oral hygiene practices.
About the Author
Dr. Thomas Youngblood received his bachelor of science degree from Texas A&M University in 1986, and would go on to earn his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Dental School in 2002. Dr. Youngblood is a member of the American Dental Association, Texas Dental Association, East Texas Dental Society, and Affiliate of Member of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. He practices at Children’s Dental Center and can be reached for more information through his website.