Toddler Dental Care

Hi, my son is now 3 1/2 years old. We have been using the beginner stuff since he was little. His doctor prescribed multi-vitamin with fluoride chewable (prescription) as we are on a well also. He said not to use regular fluoride toothpaste. It is too strong for his little teeth. We now use the stage 1 for him to brush with. He is spitting and rinsing now, but not the greatest. The pediatric dentist we use does have an application that they put on after cleaning to protect his teeth that is only $10. Hope this helps!If I can help with anything else, please let me know. Good luck!

I also have a well. We have always used flouride toothpaste, right from teh star pretty much. Initially I was using the non-flouride toothpaste, but then decided it made more sense to let him get his flouride through the toothpaste. And like your son, mine didn't really know how to spit. I just figured it was a good way to get flouride. We have never had any issues. My son is currently almost 5 years old and has never had a cavity. The dentist says he has great teeth. His teeth are also pretty white - I see a lot of kids with kind of yellowish teeth out here - don't know if that has to do with flouride use or not. They do say if you have too MUCH flouride, you can get spots on your teeth . . . I guess there is no easy answer. But the flouride toothpaste worked for us.
Good luck.

We live in a county that does not have flouride in the water..with that said- my daughter started going to the dentist at 2 (she is 5 now). When she was a baby the pedi put her on flouride drops and when she started the dentist (she goes to a pedi dentist) they continued her on a flouride chewable and advised me to continue brushing w/ the flouride free until she learns to spit and rinse well. Once she can do that, off the pills she will go and on to the regular toothpaste. The good thing about the flouride pill is that you know how much they are getting and you know they are getting exactly what they need each day. My daughter goes every six months and has perfect, strong teeth.

As long as he's getting the floride in the water, its fine. All of the floride-based toothpastes say for 3y and up.

M.

Here's what the American Academy of Pediatrics says about it - I'd recommend speaking both with your pediatrician and a pediatric dentist to get their opinion based upon your local water source (well) as it varies from municipality to municipality:

http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/t...

http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/t...

Ask your dentist. If you don't have one, give a call to "Pediatric Dentists" in your area and ask the office manager what the dentist recommends. Perhaps he/she will give you free advice without insisting on an expensive appointment. You may also have a health food store in your area. Most of the employees are health-conscious. Get a few opinions (and you'll get a different one from each) so that you may make an appropriate choice.
Also, have him practice spitting plain water, a little at a time. This will be a fun "game"; and placing just a tad on the toothbrush should suffice.

Hi M.,
I would do some research on Fluoride. It is made from Aluminum shavings and is LETHAL is swallowed in high doses. I am an adult and do not use fluoride toothpaste and have great teeth. My kids get dental check ups and have perfect teeth and we do not use fluoride. Many studies have been done showing that fluoride does not help prevent tooth decay. Be more concerned with the foods your child is eating and brushing regularly.

What you are doing is fine. Teach him how to spit his toothpaste before you give him toothpaste with flouride. If you want to you can use flouride toothpaste once a week, but 3 is usually a good age to start flouride toothpaste.

Most of the world is exposed to too much fluoride as it is - fluoride supplementation has shown many health hazards and there is no valid evidence that it's beneficial for dental health - fluoride compounds got promoted as a dental aid so that industries could sell their toxic fluoride waste and make money instead of having to pay for its disposal. visit www.fluoridealert.org to learn more. Visit www.toothsoap.com to learn about natural dental health aids (nutrition and proper alternative dental care to prevent cavities and gum disease).

Hi M.

I too have a 2 1/2 year old son and I have been brushing his teeth from the first two popped out. I also posed this question to his pediatrician who told me not to worry too much about the flouride in the toothpaste, it wont do any harm in moderate amounts even if they ingest it. So i use a very small pea sized amount of the regular kiddies toothpaste and he's fine. Good Luck.

Fluoride is a toxin....a carcinogen. Do not use it at all. Intrinsic or extrinsic.

Our dentist said NOT to give our toddler's fluoride until they know how to spit. We used a children's toothpaste until they figured it out. Once we showed them it didn't take long at all. Has your child been to the dentist? If not I would recommend taking him to one to see what your dentist says.

Most cities put flouride in their water now. Is it safe? No one honestly knows that answer. You don't monitor how much water a child drinks so they can be getting very little flouride or way to much if they live in the city. You have a well. My girls always lived where we had well water. I never gave them flouride drops or used toothpaste with flouride and they have beautiful perfect teeth. They got their flouride treatment when they got their teeth cleaned every six months and the dentis always said that was enough. They are now 22 and 24 and their teeth are perfect. I would say let the dentist do the the flouride treatments. It's safer.