Watching what people eat and drink should begin in infancy. Eating and drinking right will promote a healthy body, including the teeth.
The American Dental Association suggests how to promote healthy teeth in children:
- Don't share feeding spoons with baby or put baby's pacifier in your mouth.
- Wipe down gums after each feeding with a clean, damp cloth.
- Begin brushing your child's teeth as soon as they come in, using a child-sized toothbrush and a light smear of fluoride toothpaste.
- Provide supervision when your youngster brushes teeth, until age 6 or so.
- Only formula or breast milk should be placed in bottles, never juice, soda or sugar water. Do not let baby take a bottle to bed.
- Never dip your child's pacifier in anything sweet.
- Get your child to drink from a cup by age 1.
- Promote eating healthy foods.
-- Diana Kohnle
Source: www.medicinenet.com