After you brush your teeth, you probably reach for that bottle of mouthwash on the bathroom counter. Once you have children, you should place a strong emphasis on their dental hygiene. Failure to do so can have serious consequences for them later on. Yet proper oral hygiene for kids is not the same in every way as for adults, so you may feel torn on whether or not to let them use mouthwash.
Their Age
While you need to speak with a dental professional to determine the exact age at which your children should begin to use mouthwash, you can make some reasonable assumptions. Young children, toddlers and infants generally should not use the product. When kids are at the point where they have not yet even grown in a tooth, parents usually do not need to worry about mouthwash. Also, the mouthwash may have ingredients in it that are unsuitable for children of that age.
Ability to Swish and Spit
People should not swallow mouthwash, and that certainly applies to children too. Before your children can begin to use it, you need to make sure that they know how to swish it around in their mouths and to spit it out when they are finished with the cleaning. Therefore, you probably will need to monitor your children when they are using mouthwash at first. Even if they know the motion to use, they may not realize the importance of fully spitting it out when they are finished.
Children with Braces
Whether or not your children should use mouthwash for dental conditions they may have will depend upon what it is they are dealing with. However, in many cases, children who wear braces do need to use it. As you probably remember if you ever had braces, trying to brush your teeth fully with these little pieces of metal on is quite a challenge. Getting all of the debris out of your mouth is difficult, if not impossible. Therefore, children who have braces are often going to use mouthwash. By the time most kids get braces, though, they are old enough to use this product anyway.
Talk to Our Team
No one right answer exists to the question of whether or not children should use mouthwash. You will need to think about their age and their dental conditions, and you will need to speak with a qualified dental professional. Turn to the team at Ashburn Children’s Dentistry in Ashburn, VA. Contact us today to schedule an appointment for your child.
