During the school year, your kid(s) developed a certain daily routine from the moment they would wake up until the went to sleep at night. This daily routine most likely included, packing their school backpacks, getting ready for school and doing there homework when they got home from school. In addition to these routine tasks, cleaning and brushing their teeth once in the morning and once at night before sleeping was also part of the routine. However, now it’s summer time and the routine might have changed for many kids, especially now that school is out but just because it’s summer doesn’t mean that you necessarily need to change your routine. The best thing you can do is to ensure that your kid(s) follows the same oral health routine that they carried through school but make it a bit more fun in light of summer. Here are some ideas to make sure that your child enjoys their summer all while avoiding dental issues.
- The most important part of making sure that your kid(s) doesn’t run into dental issues, is to schedule a dental checkup. By scheduling a checkup, you can have your kid(s) start treatment before school starts, they can get a reminder from their dentist to continue practicing good oral health care routines, plus with most people away for the summer, you most likely will have an easier time getting an appointment.
- During the summer, adults and kids alike tend to consume more food, whether it’s from going to a local fair, or going to a summer bbq and pool party. Also, because of the summer heat, most of us want something delicious and refreshing to cool us off, such as ice cream, popsicles and sodas. These are all fun treats to enjoy during the summer but they can be harmful and cause damage to our teeth so we have to make sure that we watch what treats we are eating and make sure that we don’t overdo ourselves by consuming too much.
- Even though school is out, it is important that you instill the same routine for your kid(s) during the summer that you had for them while they were in school. They shouldn’t give up their brushing routine just because school is out. Just because summer break is on doesn’t mean the teeth should be on summer break too!
- Since school is out, why not have them tag alone with you to the grocery store. You can take them to the oral health care section and let them choose a toothbrush and toothpaste of their choice for the summer. This might make them more inclined to want to practice good oral hygiene by brushing their teeth and following the routine.
If you follow these steps and make sure that you kid(s) follows them too then your whole family should be able to enjoy summer break and avoid dental issues. Happy teeth make for a happy, fun, stress free summer!