A mother or father wrote me final week:
“We brush. We floss. We’ve switched toothpaste. However my child nonetheless retains getting cavities. What are we lacking?”
I’ve heard that query a whole bunch of instances. It’s at all times requested with the identical mixture of desperation and guilt.
And it at all times results in the identical fact: Cavities don’t simply come from poor brushing. They arrive from each day habits that really feel innocent.
Goldfish crackers. Gummy nutritional vitamins. Mouths that keep open by way of the evening.
When you’ve carried out the whole lot “proper” and the cavities maintain coming, this electronic mail is for you. Let’s speak about what really makes a distinction.
Let’s begin with the each day multivitamin.
Again within the 90s, we gave our daughters Flintstones nutritional vitamins from Costco. I brushed their tooth each evening and nonetheless noticed that sticky movie clinging to their molars like caramel. They by no means received cavities—however a dentist (that’s me) was brushing and flossing their tooth earlier than mattress. Most households don’t have that!
Now the issue is worse. Gummies are all over the place—multivitamins, probiotics, melatonin, magnesium. And whereas they appear like a wise alternative, they weren’t designed with the mouth in thoughts.
Your child’s tooth doesn’t care if it’s a gummy vitamin or a gummy worm. It reacts the identical manner.
In case your youngster takes a gummy, right here’s a greater choice: swap to a dental-friendly vitamin like Hiya. I prefer it as a result of it’s sweetened with monk fruit—no sugar, no acidity, and it doesn’t feed the micro organism that trigger cavities or disrupt the oral microbiome. For my eldest granddaughter—who struggled with cavities—this was a recreation changer. She had to surrender her beloved Nordic Naturals gummies, and these made the transition simple.
When you keep in mind one factor, make it this: A gummy vitamin daily does extra injury than goldfish crackers as soon as a month.
Now let’s speak about snacks.
We all know juice and soda aren’t nice. However most dad and mom are stunned once I convey up goldfish.
Starchy snacks like crackers and pretzels break down into sugar—they usually stick. They lodge into the grooves of child molars and sit there for hours. That’s the place cavities start.
You don’t must ban snacks. However you do want to consider texture. Ask: will this cling to tooth? Greatest strategy to know is to have some your self! Does it keep on with your tooth?
Higher choices? Moon Cheese which doesn’t stick and is made out of only one ingredient—cheese. Meaning no added sugars, no starches, and nothing that feeds the micro organism behind cavities. Cheese is mineral-rich and helps stabilize oral pH, making it a very tooth-friendly snack. Oh, and might’t overlook my favourite—meat sticks!
An incredible “hack” is chewing xylitol gum in between meals (I like these ones as a result of they’re freed from important oils, which disrupt the oral microbiome). Xylitol doesn’t simply cut back cavity threat—it actively protects towards it. In a single research, xylitol was proven to inhibit the expansion of micro organism within the higher airway, together with Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae. One other long-term research discovered that xylitol gum helped cut back cavities even 5 years after children stopped utilizing it. And timing issues: analysis exhibits the sooner children begin chewing xylitol gum constantly, the stronger the long-term safety. This isn’t nearly avoiding injury—it’s about serving to the mouth keep wholesome by itself. (PMID: 7486925, PMID: 8281565, PMID: 10096456)
Subsequent: respiration.
In case your youngster sleeps with their mouth open, brushing and flossing gained’t be sufficient. Mouth respiration dries the tissues, lowers oral pH, and creates the best circumstances for cavities to thrive.
You’ll be able to’t repair this in a single day, however you can begin retraining the physique.
Right here’s what I like to recommend: Throughout TV time, use MyoTape—a delicate, kid-safe tape that encourages lip closure whereas they sit and focus.
Display screen time works effectively as a result of they’re nonetheless, relaxed, and motivated. Respiration by way of the mouth is extra noticeable in that state—and it provides you a quiet second to construct consciousness and introduce a brand new behavior with out a energy wrestle.
Begin with 10–quarter-hour. Construct from there.
In case your youngster can’t maintain their mouth closed comfortably, one thing deeper could also be happening. Tongue ties. Enlarged adenoids. A slim palate.
If that’s the case, see a practical dentist or airway-focused ENT. They will help uncover what’s making nasal respiration arduous—and what to do subsequent. Yow will discover a supplier by way of the Purposeful Dentist Listing or the AADSM (American Academy of Dental Sleep Drugs) listing. These are nice beginning factors should you’re undecided who to show to.
And at last: water.
In case your youngster isn’t ingesting a lot water through the day, they’re seemingly not producing sufficient saliva to guard their tooth.
Saliva is your youngster’s built-in protection system. It’s filled with minerals that rebuild enamel. It buffers acid. It helps the mouth heal itself. Nevertheless it solely works if the physique is hydrated.
Right here’s what occurs: each time your youngster eats—particularly carbs or sugar—acid ranges within the mouth rise. That acid pulls minerals from the enamel, weakening it. However saliva steps in. It brings again calcium, phosphate, and different minerals to rebuild the enamel. That’s remineralization. And when it really works, it might cease cavities earlier than they begin.
However it might’t work in case your youngster is dry.
When children are dehydrated, saliva slows down. The pH drops. Acid builds. Micro organism thrive. It will get even worse at evening, particularly for mouth breathers. They get up with a dry mouth and no safety.
The repair isn’t fancy. It’s good quaint water. Particularly after meals and snacks, when acid is at its peak. And in case your youngster resists water, give them a particular straw or allow them to pick a water bottle. I really like this flavored electrolyte—it’s non-acidic with a pH of about 6.5, which is near impartial and much safer than many fashionable electrolyte drinks that fall effectively beneath the crucial pH threshold. Lemon Lime is my favourite taste.
Brushing and flossing matter—however they’re not the entire image.
In case your youngster retains getting cavities, don’t blame your self. Have a look at the each day habits.
The excellent news is: you’ll be able to shift the sample. One resolution, one behavior, one alternative at a time. That’s how actual prevention works. And it’s how your child’s story modifications.
Know a mother or father scuffling with this? Ahead this to them. It is likely to be the primary time they’ve heard a dentist join the dots between on a regular basis habits and tooth decay—with actual options.
Speak quickly,
Mark (Dr. B)
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P.S. Pictured beneath: real-world testing by the grandkid panel. Nobody’s requested for his or her gummies again. One of many perks of getting a grandpa for a dentist is getting recruited for stuff like this. I used to be genuinely excited to seek out a children’ vitamin made with tooth in thoughts—no sugar and nothing that undoes the work we’re doing to guard their mouths.
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