Q1 My son is almost three years old. Is this a good time to start brushing his teeth? When should I stop using a damp cloth and start using a toothbrush to clean his teeth? A It is definitely a good time to start brushing your three-year-old’s teeth. A damp cloth is not able to remove the layer of plaque from the teeth as effectively as a toothbrush. Plaque is the sticky layer that forms on teeth which causes cavities and gum inflammation. Therefore, a damp cloth should be used only to clean the gums for babies without teeth. You should try to encourage your child to brush his own teeth but children below the age of six do not usually have the manual dexterity to handle the toothbrush properly. Hence, parents have to check their child’s teeth after they are done. Do not stop your child from brushing his own teeth just because he is unable to do a good job of it, otherwise you may have a problem getting him to pick up the habit again later on. One cannot expect a child of two to keep his mouth open long enough for you to brush all his teeth at one go. Try brushing a segment at a time and make it fun, by combining it with singing, counting or story-telling, for example. The general advice is for parents to help their children with the brushing until they are between six and seven years old. Thereafter, supervise one of the daily brushing till they are in their early teens. Q2 Do I need to use toothpaste for my toddler? And if so, why, since milk teeth will eventually be replaced by adult teeth? A Having good oral hygiene from young will prevent cavities and gum inflammation. This is important as these conditions will affect the general well-being of your child. When a child develops cavities, he or she will experience a lot of pain and discomfort, which will affect eating and chewing. Often, the tooth may have to be extracted, which can be quite a traumatic experience for both parent and child. Even though baby teeth last only a few years, decay, cavities and infection can take their toll, and may require expensive treatment to repair. In addition to helping your child to chew and speak properly, milk teeth also retain the space for the permanent teeth to erupt into. If a baby tooth has to be extracted too early because of cavities before the new tooth is ready to grow out, the neighbouring teeth start closing in and the space may become too small for the new tooth. This will force the new tooth to come out in a crooked position. When that happens, your child would probably need to wear braces to straighten those teeth. So, yes, it is important to practise good oral hygiene for your child. Start by brushing his or her teeth with a small soft-bristled toothbrush. As for toothpaste, we usually start the child on it when he is able to rinse and spit out, which is between the ages of three and four. That’s because we do not want the child to swallow the toothpaste. Also, start with a toothpaste meant for children as the fluoride content is much lower than that in adult toothpaste. At the beginning, use just a dab and only once a day. When you see that your child is rinsing well and spitting out, you can slowly increase the amount of the toothpaste to the size of a pea, and use it twice daily. Your child can start using adult toothpaste when he is at least 12 years old. The information provided above is for your general knowledge only. You should seek professional advice or treatment for your condition. http://www.todayonline.com/articles/293904.asp