Damage to your child’s teeth at an early age can cause a lasting impact. Even if your child still has their baby teeth, severe enough trauma may harm the development of their adult teeth in the years to come. Here we have our tips to help prevent dental injuries in kids.
Tips to Help Prevent Dental Injuries in Kids
Given the risk to your child’s immediate well-being and future oral health, every parent has to seriously consider oral injury prevention. Keeping your child’s teeth safe may be easier said than done if you have a particularly active youngster or one who is a little on the clumsy side.
Fortunately, there are a few steps you can take to help safeguard your child’s oral health against the natural clamor of growing up. Here are a few of the most important tips you can use to help prevent your child from sustaining serious oral injuries.
Always Wear a Seatbelt
Wearing a seatbelt is always a good idea when you are in a moving vehicle. A seatbelt could literally save your or your child’s life. So you might wonder why it is also part of an oral safety guide.
A seatbelt works to restrict the forward momentum of your body in the case of a sudden stop or crash. Without one, a relatively minor situation, such as slamming on your brakes with no warning, could cause physical trauma to the front of your child’s face along with their teeth.
Use Mouthguards as Needed
If your child takes part in any sports, then they should wear a mouthguard. A moldable mouthguard from your local sporting goods store is better than nothing. However, if your child is regularly engaged in sporting activities, then you may want to talk to your dentist in Cedar Falls about having a customized mouthguard made.
Custom mouthguards are precisely constructed to fit your child’s mouth. This guarantees the most comfortable experience with the most protection. Custom mouthguards may not be well-suited for you if your child still has teeth coming in. But you can discuss other options with your dentist to protect them in the meantime.
Use Baby Gates to Prevent Dangerous Falls
If you have stairs in your home, then baby gates at the top and bottom of the stairs are an absolute must for smaller children. One good tumble down the stairs could cause substantial damage to your child’s teeth.
In addition to baby-proofing your stairs, consider baby-proofing any other areas of your home where your little one could fall onto or hit themselves in the face. Common risk factors are windows, cupboards, and beds.
Make Sure Playground Areas Are Safe
Every child needs time and space to play, and playgrounds are a great place to do that. With that said, you should make sure that you are taking your children to playgrounds with equipment that is reasonably well-maintained.
Of course, few family parks look brand new. But avoid pieces of equipment that are showing signs of serious rust or other wear. These could cause your child to fall or hurt themselves. All equipment should be surrounded by a soft landing area. Sand, rubberized padding, and even wood chips are a lot better than hard dirt or concrete.
Discuss Emergency Protocols with Your Dentist
Even the most diligent parent is going to deal with the occasional injury. Children need the opportunity to learn and explore, and sometimes they hurt themselves in the process.
In order to prepare for that eventuality, you should have a good idea of what to do if your child has dental injuries in Cedar Falls. This is a subject that you can briefly discuss with your dentist. Do so tells you how to immediately begin caring for your child and where you can take them for more permanent treatment.