Keep it Healthy – Sugar Is an Addiction
If you’re a parent in today’s fast paced world, you likely have a thousand things running through your head at any given moment. Whether it’s wondering if you’ll be able to get your child to their next baseball practice on time, or if you’re worried about allowing them to spend too much time behind a tablet or smartphone, the pressures of parenting today are no joke!
One area that really is critical for children is taking care of their teeth. Oral hygiene is one of the most important aspects of a child’s overall health, but it’s one that is often neglected.
The proper dental care of permanent teeth in particular is extremely important to your child’s overall oral hygiene. While permanent teeth are actually partly formed in children between the ages of 0-3, eruption doesn’t occur until around 6 years and up. When permanent teeth begin to erupt, children and parents alike should ensure they’re properly cleaning and caring for these teeth to prevent issues down the road.
Establish a Dental Care Routine
One of the most important aspects of any dental care regimen is consistency, and this includes proper dental hygiene for young kids. Permanent teeth begin to erupt when children reach around 6 years of age – permanent teeth are often neglected at this stage, because parents and children may not realize that these teeth are erupting behind a child’s primary teeth. Because these new permanent teeth are not noticed, they are not properly brushed.
While permanent teeth are fully formed when they erupt, their surfaces still remain porous and not sufficiently mineralized, making these teeth more susceptible to cavities.
Monitor Eating Habits & Limit Sugars
There is no denying that kids need strong and healthy teeth to properly chew, speak to others and to flash that cute smile to friends and family. To stay healthy, children need a well-balanced diet that includes fruits and vegetables, grains, dairy and lean proteins.
While a well-balanced diet is key, most every food, including fruit, vegetables and milk, have some type of sugar, which can contribute to tooth decay. To monitor the amount of sugar that you’re giving your children, it’s best to read labels on food and beverages, and attempt to buy items that are low in sugar. This is especially the case with beverages, where sugar content can be extremely high. Select beverages like water that offer great hydration properties, and also contribute to proper nutrition.
Visit A Dentist Regularly
As a parent, children can be incredibly expensive. Whether it’s the non-stop expenses related to school, or the constantly evolving wardrobes, raising kids today is no easy feat. One area where some parents may try to cut expenses is with dental care.
While dental care is not necessarily cheap, it’s incredibly important to ensure your children grow up to be healthy adults. The Mayo Clinic highlighted a variety of major health concerns, many of which can be prevented with proper oral hygiene, including diabetic complications, respiratory infections, dementia and heart disease. While it’s hard to think about these types of conditions when a child is young, it’s important to realize that the steps you’re taking now directly translate into your child living a long and healthy life.
If you’re looking at ways to cut costs when it comes to your family’s dental care, there are a number of dental insurance options that may be beneficial to you to help defray some of the costs of dental work.
Dental Insurance For Your Family
As mentioned above, dental insurance or dental savings plans may be a great way for you to provide proper dental care to you and your children without breaking the bank financially. Providers like Aetna offer a variety of dental savings plans that can help you save anywhere from 15-50% off dental visits.
Dental insurance plans exist for both individuals as well as families, and can include most dental procedures as well as vision, hearing, prescription drugs and much more.
Dental Insurance Options
If you’re interested in learning more about dental savings plans, and how they can save you as much as 15-50% on dental services, don’t hesitate to browse our dental savings plans today for more information. We’re constantly running specials that should make signing up a virtual no-brainer for you and your family.