Teeth

Hi my son Hamish has just got both of his bottom teeth through. The top ones aren't far away. I was just wondering what you do to look after the teeth - or when you start brushing?

Thanks

Hi Hamish's Mum,
My dentist recommended using a small soft toothbrush (they're heaps of different ones available at the supermarket) as soon as my daughter's teeth started appearing. Apparently you do not need to use toothpaste but just wet the brush and rub lightly over the teeth. I also let my daughter play with her toothbrush a little after we're done so she gets used to handling it.
Hope this helps,
Peta

Hi Deb,

Apparently we are supposed to be brushing their gums before they even have teeth just to get the excess off. There is another post about this somewhere here on the forum. The experts also say that once a tooth has appeared we are supposed to brush it. It makes sense I guess as we don't like the furry feeling on our teeth so it must annoy them too. We started brushing our son's tooth just after it appeared and we had just read about the gums bit somewhere so I did go 'Ooops'. But definitely once you have more than one tooth food bits can get stuck so I would start now. Also the younger you start brushing and make it a nice experience for them or at least get them used to it, the easier it will probably be to get the job done when they have a mouth full. We brush our son's teeth while we are in the shower. I let him take the brush and he puts it in his mouth just like everything else and then we move it around his gums and across his 2 teeth and usually it's not a problem. He will even open his mouth for us to do it. Not always though. You just buy a baby toothbrush, they're marked 'from 4mths up' and no toothpaste yet as they can't spit it out. You can also use a damp soft cloth and rub it over their gums with your finger, but I found that wasn't real easy as your finger is a bit bulky and not as easy to manoeuvre.

Ange.

hi hamish's mum
my little man who is 4.5 months old has just got his first two teeth and since they had started to show they were coming through we have been using a gum stimulator to help ease the pain. It comes as a three piece set, a stimulator for before teeth, a rubber toothbrush for the first couple of teeth, and a soft bristled brush for when the teeth are fully through. It cost us about $8.50 from big w and it was what my doctor recommended for the first couple of months. She also advised as soon as they are born that after every feed to wipe their mouth out with a clean cloth dipped in sterilized water. Hope this helps a little.