When you take your child to a pediatric dentist for regular dental care, know that their pediatric dentist has things they'd like you to be doing as a parent for your child. Your child, at any age, should be having regular dental work done, even if they have just started to cut teeth.

Here are things your pediatric dentist wants you to know.

Your little ones need to be flossing

You should be flossing your children's teeth if they cannot floss on their own. Even your little ones only have a few teeth or are still considered babies or toddlers should be flossing regularly. If you are flossing your children's teeth regularly, then they'll learn how to make flossing a habit of their own one day, and they will have fewer issues with having plaque and bacteria stuck in their teeth and gums.

Your little ones should not have bottles or sipping cups at night

Do you send your kids to bed with a sippy cup or a bottle at night to help them sleep? If it contains anything other than water, even if it's milk, then you are putting them at risk of having their teeth rot because of the sugar content. Even water poses a risk because a child who sleeps with a bottle or other cup in their mouth while they sleep can risk shifting their teeth.

You should remove all sipping cups and bottles from your little ones before bed and give them water and sugar-free beverages to drink at any time of the day. This way, you can help your children keep their mouths clean during the day.

Your kids can chew gum so long as it's sugar-free

If your kids aren't big on brushing their teeth often or they cannot brush their teeth at school, then they can chew sugar-free gum to help keep their teeth clean before they can brush them again. Sugar-free gum makes the mouth produce saliva, which in turn helps clean the teeth in big ways. A kid's dentist may even recommend different types of gum to try with your kids so they can keep a pack in their desks at school, their pockets, or even their backpacks.

A pediatric dentist wants you to know that your kids will have healthier mouths if they brush often. Children's dentistry is essential in keeping your kids' mouths healthy and strong.

For more information, contact a pediatric dentist.