How To Prevent Tooth Decay Naturally In Toddlers And Adults

how to prevent tooth decay

Teeth not only help people chew foods, but also affect their appearance. If you have strong teeth, you will feel that your foods are more delicious than when you have decaying teeth. Strong teeth also make you look more beautiful thanks to their clear color. If you have tooth decay, you will find it hard to eat the foods you love. Additionally, your breath will also bad, and the color of your teeth will no longer clear. Therefore, everyone should learn how to prevent tooth decay to protect themselves and their family members from teeth issues. From the site Vkool, I made this article to show you 15 effective and safe tips on how to prevent tooth decay naturally without drugs.

How To Prevent Tooth Decay Naturally?

15 Tips And Advice From Dentists On How To Prevent Tooth Decay In Toddlers And Adults

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I. Tips And Advice On How To Prevent Tooth Decay In Toddlers

Although toddlers have baby teeth for less than 10 years, proper dental care can keep their mouth healthy and help them develop hygienic habits. Therefore, parents and caregivers should know how to prevent tooth decay in toddlers efficiently. Cavities are not only painful, but also difficult to treat in young children.

1. Take Good Care Of Your Baby’s Teeth

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  • If your baby is less than 12 months old, you should keep his or her mouth clean by wiping the gums gently with a baby washcloth. When the first tooth appears, ask your family doctor whether your baby is obtaining enough fluoride.
  • If your baby is from 12 to 24 months old, you should brush his or her teeth twice or three times a day. You can use a brush with a smear of fluoride toothpaste on it to clean the baby’s teeth. It is best to brush the teeth after breakfast and before bed time. The fluoride in toothpaste should be swished rather than being swallowed, so you should watch your child while brushing to prevent him or her from swallowing it.

Learn more: Easy And Good Dental Health Tips For Kids And Adults At Home

2. Don’t Put Your Child To Bed With A Bottle Or Food

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Don’t put your child to bed with a bottle of milk or food as this will expose your baby’s teeth to decay, choking, and ear infections. Give your baby a bottle during meals only. You should never use a bottle and sippy cup as a pacifier, and let your baby drink from them for a long time.

If your tap water is from a well, you should have a water sample tested by your child’s doctor regarding natural fluoride content. If the tap water does not contain enough fluoride, the doctor will prescribe some fluoride supplement to prevent your baby from the risk of tooth decay.

Recommended reading: 27 Easy And Healthy Baby Food Ideas At 1 Year Old And Above

3. Don’t Let Your Child Eat Sweet Or Sticky Foods 

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You had better teach your baby to drink water and milk from a regular cup or glass as soon as possible. Normally, children who are from 12 months of one age are able to drink from a cup. Drinking from a cup can limit the liquid to stick around the teeth. Moreover, a cup is normally not taken to bed. If your baby must have a sippy cup or a bottle for long periods, you should fill it with water only. If your child is thirsty when you are in cars, offer him or her water only. Don’t let your baby eat sweet, gummies, candy, cookies, or fruit roll-ups. Crackers and chips contain sugar, too, as they are also not good for your child’s teeth. These foods are even bad the overall health if your toddler snacks on them too much. You should also teach your toddler to use the tongue to clean off the food that sticks on his or her teeth.

You had better serve your child with juice during meals only. You should also remember that juice is not recommended for under-6-month-old babies.

Learn more: 22 Natural Home Remedies For Oral Thrush In Infants And Adults

4. Keep Toothbrush Clean

Use tap water to rinse your baby’s toothbrush after cleaning his or her teeth. Make sure that the toothbrush is always clean. Keep the toothbrush at a high and dry place. Make sure that all other toothbrushes don’t touch your baby’s one. This helps prevent germs travelling from one brush to another and running into your toddler’s mouth. Dentists advise that you should replace toothbrush for your child every 3 months.

5. Cleaning Your Toddler’s Teeth 

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The best way to prevent tooth decay  is to clean your little son or daughter’s teeth twice every day. The best time should be in early mornings and right before bed at night.

You can use a soft toothbrush which is designed specifically for under-two-year-old children to clean his or her teeth. If your child is younger than 18 months, brush the teeth with water only. When the baby is 18 months or more, use a tiny amount of toothbrush to clean the teeth. You will need to encourage your baby brushing the teeth without swallowing.

When your child is 2 years old, teach him to clean the teeth. Letting your baby keep the toothbrush while you are cleaning the teeth for him will make him feel he is playing a part in the activity. However, your child still needs your supervision while cleaning teeth till he is eight years or older.

Do you know the right way to brush your toddler’s teeth? Here it is:

  • Stay behind your baby so that he feels secure. If it is possible, you should do it where there is a mirror as it helps you observe your baby’s mouth.
  • Cup his chin with your hands while keeping his head leaning against your chest.
  • Angle the brush towards his gum. Brush his teeth in circles to make both sides of teeth clean. Lift your toddler’s lips to clean the teeth completely.
  • Brush repeatedly on the surfaces of your baby’s teeth to make it clean.
  • Gently brush his tongue.

Learn more: 22 Home Remedies For Gum Disease At Home

6. Fluoride And Toothpaste

fluoride and toothpaste review

Fluoride is one kind of mineral that assists in building strong teeth. This mineral also helps prevent tooth decay efficiently. However, if children consume fluoride too much, they may suffer from white marks on their teeth. This will affect the beauty of their teeth, but will not usually affect their health. In Australia, people add fluoride to tap water as it is beneficial for teeth. It is best to take in tiny amounts of fluoride everyday via tap water, toothpaste, or foods and drinks. You can begin using low-fluoride toothpastes for your child when he is 18 months. You should only use a very small amount of this toothpaste, and encourage your baby to spit it out when brushing.

7. Things To Do When Having Signs Of Tooth Decay 

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When you are worried about your toddler’s teeth, you should:

  • Give him a cool teething ring or dummy to bite
  • Cook easy to eat foods, which do not require much chewing
  • Give your child something firm to suck

If your child are still unhappy, take him to your doctor as teething might not be his issue then.

Recommended reading: 19 Home Remedies For A Toothache Infection Due To Cavity

8. Visiting The Dentist

You should take your child to doctor for an assessment when he is at the age of two. This will give you an opportunity to talk with your dentist about a plan to take care of your baby’s teeth.

Your child may also see other professionals, not always a dentist, such as dental therapists, or dental hygienists.

9. Pay Attention To Your Children’s Eating Habit

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Appropriate diet can help prevent cavities. When your baby eats or drinks something that are rich in starches or sugar, bacteria in his mouth use that starch and sugar to build up acids, and these acids start to eat the tooth’s enamel.

The saliva can fight against the acid attack. However, if your child eats foods that contain sugar during the day — the acid attacks can win the saliva, resulting in mineral loss, and consequently cause a cavity. Therefore, you should know for sure what food your children usually eat, and adjust their eating habit if necessary.

Tips for strong teeth:

  • Limit snacks between meals to reduce attacks of acids on baby’s teeth and give the teeth time to repair and rest.
  • Keep candy, soda, cookies, and drinks with sugar for birthday parties or other occasions.
  • Limit juice consumption by following podiatrists’ instructions
  • Ensure that your toddler doesn’t consume foods or drink containing sugar after brushing teeth at night. Saliva flow reduces when the baby sleeps. With a lack of saliva, your baby’s teeth cannot repair themselves after acid attacks.

Keep reading the article if you want to know other tips on how to prevent tooth decay.

II. Tips And Advice On How To Prevent Tooth Decay In Adults

Tooth decay can destroy tooth structure and badly affect both the enamel and the dentin layer of the tooth.

Tooth decay happens when foods containing carbohydrates are left on teeth. The bacteria in the mouth digest the leftover of foods, and turn them into acids. After that, bacteria, food debris, saliva, and acid combine to generate plaque that clings to your teeth. Acids in the plaque dissolve the enamel surface of your teeth, creating holes in teeth called cavities.

Learn more: 10 Benefits Of Healthy Eating Habits For Teenagers

Here are tips and advice on how to prevent tooth decay in adults:

1. Take Care Of Your Teeth Daily

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  • Brush your teeth twice a day using fluoride toothpaste. It is good to brush the teeth after every meal and before going to bed.
  • Clean between your teeth everyday with dental floss or inter-dental cleaners, such as the Reach Stim-U-Dent, Oral-B Inter-dental Brush, or Sulcabrush.
  • Eat balanced meals and avoid carbohydrates like candy, chips, and pretzels, which can remain on your tooth surface. If you eat sticky foods, you had better brush your teeth right after the meal. If you eat snacks, choose savory ones, such as nuts, cheese, or raw vegetables. Fruits are healthy, but acidic ones are also rich in sugar, so do not eat them during Recovery Time. If you eat them as a snack, eat something alkaline after that.

Learn more: How To Get A Beautiful Smile Naturally

2. Go To Your Dentist Every 6 Months

  • Check with your dentist about how to use supplemental fluoride to strengthen your teeth.
  • Ask the dentist about dental sealants, which are applied to your back teeth to prevent decay.
  • Visit your dentist on regular basis for oral exam and cleaning.

3. Use Fluoride And Have A Chewing Gum

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Drinking fluoridated water helps prevent tooth decay in adults and toddlers. A mouth rinse with fluoride can help you stay away from tooth decay as per the American Dental Association.

Fluoride can efficiently stop the development of tooth decay. It can also reverse tooth decay at the early stage. Fluoride also helps:

  • Prevent mineral loss from your tooth and replace them with supplements
  • Resist against bacteria in producing acids

There are many ways to get fluoride. Here are some of them:

  • Drink fluoridated water; 74% of Americans drink fluoridated water
  • Use a fluoride toothpaste for your teeth

When your teeth need extra fluoride to be healthy, you can:

  • Apply some fluoride gel to your tooth
  • Take fluoride tablets
  • Rinse your mouth with a fluoride products

Nowadays, researchers are trying to develop new methods for preventing tooth decay. Some studies pointed out that a chewing gum containing sweetener xylitol can temporarily retarded the growth of bacteria which causes tooth decay. Additionally, researchers have explored a lot of materials that can slowly release fluoride to help prevent further tooth decay. You can place these materials between teeth or fissures of teeth. Researchers are also studying to produce toothpastes and mouth rinses which can heal the early cavities.

Recommended reading: 9 Easy Ways For Promoting Healthy Eating At Home

4. Do Not Drink Boiled Sweets

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Do not eat boiled sweets as they will cling to your teeth. If you love sweets, choose sugar-free drinks to stay away from tooth decay.  Gum can prevent streptococcus mutants from growing, which limits the development of bacteria that causes tooth decay.

Moreover, you should be aware of hidden sugars in juices and soft drinks. If the bottle shows “no added sugar”, it doesn’t mean it is sugar-free. The producer may list sugar as ‘carbohydrates’.

Learn more: 13 Super Simple Tips For Whitening Skin Naturally

5. Be Aware Of Soft Drinks

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  • Soft drinks are very bad for your teeth because you may drink them for a long time. You should choose diet drinks if you do not want to have tooth decay. Diet drinks do not cause decay, but they may cause the erosion of acids. Therefore, you should limit the time these drinks cling to your teeth. If you are fond of drinking sweet tea and coffee throughout the day, you should use sweeteners as a replacement for sugar. Some teas are able to protect your teeth from decay. Pure tea and coffee do not contain sugar.
  • Water and milk are sugar free, so they are good choices for you.

Recommended reading: 38 Healthy And Beauty Benefits Of Drinking Green Tea Daily

6. Have Sealants Placed And Use A Mouth Rinse

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Dental sealants are normally applied onto the biting surfaces of your back teeth. The sealant protects your tooth from involving in a cavity by fighting against bacteria. Sealants are very common in children thanks to the growth of their permanent teeth. However, sealants are beneficial for adults, too.

There are a lot of antimicrobial mouth rinses available on the market that can decrease plaque, such as Crest Pro Health or Listerine. Rinsing with one of the mouth rinses after you brush your teeth can prevent cavities efficiently.

To see all of our home remedies and the conditions they treat, go to our main Home Health page.

After reading my overview of how to prevent tooth decay naturallyin bothtoddlers & adults, you must have gained some valuable knowledge to avoid cavities. This post is part of a series about tips and advice on how to prevent tooth decay and other oral diseases naturally. Got a question? Need answers? Leave a comment below. Now are you ready to try using the tips provided to strengthen your teeth?

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