Teenagers Oral Health Care

As a parent, there are so many things you have to think about when raising children. Once they become teenagers – which I thought would be easier, but oh was I wrong – there are just as many things, but at a whole new level… like getting their driver’s license. And the cost of teenagers oral health care.

Teenagers have the same oral health care concerns as adults and need to be treated as such for the most part. However, there are still some ways that a parent can help to make sure that your teen practices good oral health care. Here are some tips that any parent of a teenager may find to be helpful.

Teenagers Oral Health Care

Encourage Your Teen to Floss and Brush Regularly

Try to encourage your teen to brush their teeth at least twice a day, and to floss daily. Since they are teens now and probably care about how they look, you may be able to use that to encourage better oral habits.  The last thing anyone wants to have when it comes to dating, or even just presenting themselves on a daily basis, is to have stained or missing teeth.

Proper oral habits will help your teen to shine with that award-winning, heart-melting pearly white smile.

Remind Your Teen That No One Likes a Yuck-Mouth

Bad oral habits can lead directly to bad breath. The teen years involve a tremendous amount of social interaction, and that means a lot of up close talking with your friends and other peers. Even today, with text messaging being a major proponent of teen communication, they will still have a lot of in-person discussions and interactions.

The quickest way to turn these in-person quality time into a disaster is to have bad breath caused by poor dental habits. A yucky mouth will definitely leave the wrong impression on the other person.  Take the time to remind your teen that the best way to avoid this is to take care of their teeth and gums, and embracing good oral and dental habits.

Keep The Supplies On Hand

As the parent of a teen, one thing that you can do to help with their dental and oral care is to make sure that you have the proper oral health care supplies on hand and prominently in their space. You can keep current and replacement toothbrushes, floss, and plenty of toothpaste handy for their needs.

You can even get creative with your supply choices in order to help build good habits. For example, many places now carry flavored floss, which may encourage usage. Look for toothpaste products that have a pleasing taste. You may discover that your teen likes a certain brand or type of toothpaste, making it more compelling to brush on a regular basis.

Along with the taste of the toothpaste, your teen may prefer a certain kind or even color of a toothbrush. While it may seem like they are being picky, teens are often struggling with establishing their identity. Having a particular toothbrush may help them identify better with the act of brushing their teeth. Anything you can do to make it more personal to them will probably help to encourage the practice.

As well as keeping regular dental checkups. Your teen’s dentist, like Karl Jobst Grove OK, is very important to your teenager’s oral health care.

Make It Convenient

Between school, after school, friendly get-togethers, and other activities, teens often live a busy life. One way to help them keep a good brushing habit is to have supplies available in multiple locations. For example, there may be a downstairs bathroom on the way out the door. Instead of the chore of running upstairs to get the job done, they can literally brush their teeth on their way out the door.

While this is not the best way to approach dental care, an occasional quick brush is better than nothing. However, you will probably find that flossing will need to be a more pre-meditated action. All the more reason for that flavored floss, right?

With the right encouragement, parents will find that developing and keeping good oral dental habits in their teen is quite possible. While nothing is always smooth in these formative teenage years, following these tips may help with making it a little easier for both your teen and yourself. Any parent of a teenager will probably appreciate something going a little smoother, I am sure.