As we enter the new year, a lot of people are probably figuring out what their big focuses are going to be for the up and coming year. Many families will have travel goals. Some may have home-related goals or sports-related goals. We think everyone should have at least one health-related goal too. However, we don't mean a fitness routine or a diet... we mean fittin' a little extra attention into your family's oral health. Here are 3 simple goals to choose from that you can throw into your current daily routines without really noticing!
What Is One More Step?
An easy way to add some extra TLC ("tender, love, and care) for your family's teeth is to go one more step. Most families have the brushing and flossing down! So what is an extra 15-20 seconds to swish around some mouthwash? Or another 15-20 seconds to scrape your tongue? There are a lot of different ways you can add a little more care into your daily dental routine without adding a lot of additional time. We believe that each family should choose the routine that works best for them and keeps their teeth clean! We suggest making it fun too! Play around, try new things, and discover the best oral health strategy for you and yours.
Cut Out One Oral Health "No-No"
There are habits that just are not good for our teeth, not just foods. When we think of cutting things out or giving things up, a lot of times we overwhelm ourselves with too much at once. We recommend starting instead, with something small and simple. It is much easier to cut out one thing than it is to try to cut out multiple things at once. See if people in your family are down to challenge themselves to cut out just one of these dental "no-no's" as we enter 2022!
- Biting my nails.
- Grinding my teeth.
- Using teeth as tools.
- Sucking my thumb (past an appropriate age).
- Chewing on _______. (Hard candies, ice, pens/pencils, not food, etc.)
Learning About Oral Health At Home
We believe that lifelong oral health begins at home! It starts somewhere between the kitchen table and the bathroom sink! We also believe the learning that happens at the kitchen table, doesn't just have to be about mouth-healthy foods. In fact, dinner is the best time to sometimes bring up important conversations. A fun way we discovered to learn about oral health was everyone from the family bringing a dental fact to dinner. It doesn't have to be about dentistry either, it can be any topic you want. It is a great way to get fun, intellectual conversations started around a shared meal! (Hands-on, at-home dental experiments are a fun way too!)
We hope your family has a great start to the new year, regardless of if you choose goals or not! We love to help our patients and community by offering our dental knowledge and experience. If you have any questions or are interested in suggestions, feel free to reach out! Happy New Year from Dr. Casey and Medical Center Children's Dentistry! We wish the best to you all!
