Excerpt

Brushing children’s teeth

• start brushing as soon as the first tooth appears (usually at about 6 months of age), at least twice a day with fluoride toothpaste last thing at night and on at least one other occasion

• brushing at bedtime is important as it makes sure that the fluoride continues to protect the teeth while your child is asleep

• parents/carers should brush or help their child to brush their teeth until they are at least seven years old to make sure the teeth are cleaned properly, to supervise the amount of toothpaste used and to prevent licking or eating the toothpaste

• For the maximum prevention of tooth decay for children aged 0 – 6 years use toothpastes containing 1350 – 1500 parts per million (ppm) fluoride

• the amount of fluoride that is in the toothpaste can be found on the side of the tube or on the packaging

• for children under three years old use a smear of toothpaste containing no less than 1000 ppm fluoride (see Figure 1)

• children between three and six years old should use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste containing more than 1000 ppm fluoride (see Figure 2)

• encourage your child to spit out the toothpaste after brushing and do not let them rinse out with water as this will wash away the fluoride and reduces how well it works – spit don’t rinse

*See original guidance online at http://fluoridealert.org/wp-content/uploads/uk.phe_.toothpaste-children.2017.pdf

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