My daughter is starting to get teeth and I have been brushing them, but am wondering when I should start flossing her teeth. She’s been cooperative so far, but I don’t know when I should start.

Kelly

Dear Kelly,

It is amazing that you are so on top of this. I can tell that you are a great mom. I recommend you begin flossing as soon as her teeth start touching. You can get flavored floss. You’ll have to do it for her at first, until she has the manual dexterity to start doing it herself. They even have ones with handles to make it easier.

In case you are not already doing so, I would start bringing her to a pediatric dentist for check ups. Some parents make the mistake of thinking there is no reason to take a child to the dentist because their teeth are new and won’t have any problems. Then, they just keep with that attitude until, suddenly, there is a problem.

What that means is the first experience their child has with a dentist is for a dental problem or, worse, a dental emergency. Now, instead of having a nice visit with the dentist which is fun and exciting, it is more likely to be scary or painful. It’s always best to have your children start seeing the dentist as soon they develop teeth. This way, they associate the dentist with pleasant things instead of frightening ones.

You can read our dental tips for parents page in order to get more information on children’s dental care.
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