Teething issues: Great oral hygiene habits before teething
Teething issues: Great oral hygiene habits before teething
Although the first milk tooth is seen in the mouth around 6 to 9 months of age, oral hygiene practices should start before that. Cleaning the gum pads (the pink tissue over the jaws in the baby’s mouth where teeth will erupt) is one of the habits that should be introduced early in life.
Why do the gum pads need to be cleaned?
The reasons for introducing this early oral hygiene habit are:
Decreasing the bacterial load in mouth:
The mouth gets colonized with environmental bacteria a few hours after birth. With every feed the infant takes the bacteria also get nutrition and multiply . Although the mouth can never be free of bacteria, regular oral hygiene decreases the count of bad bacteria. Decreasing the load of bacteria helps in maintaining a healthier mouth.
Prevents decay of teeth:
Although not clearly visible, a small portion of the tooth might erupt into the mouth as early as 4 months. With proper cleaning of the gum pads the small surface of tooth in the mouth is also cleaned preventing its decay. Also, if the surface from which teeth will erupt is clean it will create a healthier environment for the teeth when erupted. Preventing their decay.
Introducing good oral hygiene habits:
Good habits should start early. If the infant’s mouth is kept clean, as they grow up they will also have a tendency to maintain hygiene. Gradually, when the teeth erupt it will be easier for the caregiver/parent to get the child brush their teeth.
How to clean the gum pads?
The gum pads need to be cleaned using a moist (moistened with the child’s drinking water) piece of gauze or soft cloth wrapped around the index finger.
- Place the infant in the lap, and a little turned towards the chest so that both the jaws can be seen clearly.
- Use gentle strokes with the finger covered with cloth/gauze.
- Clean the upper jaw before the lower. This prevents the debris from the upper jaw to fall down on the lower jaw after it is cleaned.
- Raise the lip gently and clean the entire jaw.
- Clean the palate and the tongue side of the jaws as well.
- After cleaning the gum pads scrape the tongue gently using the same cloth.
- If the cloth/gauze seems dirty during cleaning, you can rinse it before cleaning the remaining surfaces.
Precautions
- Use gentle strokes. Using excessive pressure can cause injury to the gums.
- Avoid areas of any ulcers. In case of ulcers clean around them, but not on them. Know what to do if your baby has ulcers in the mouth.
- Do not use any paste or mouthwash on the cloth/gauze.
- Do not use any brush till teeth erupt. The bristles of the brush can damage the gums causing ulceration.
When to clean the gum pads?
The gum pads need to be cleaned once a day. It is preferable to clean them at night before going to bed because
- It will make the child habitual to oral hygiene practice at night.
- The bacteria divide more at night increasing the bacterial load. Thus, cleaning before sleeping will decrease the number of bacteria that can divide.
- Let us start taking the steps now and embark on the journey of good health.
Next on the series “Teethers- how and when to use them”
