February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and the cavity-preventing celebrations are already underway! Dentists, Dental Hygienists and Dental Assistants across the country are going into schools and daycares this month to educate children about tooth-decay prevention. Dental teams are ready to motivate kids to be excited about brushing and flossing! Parents, grandparents and caregivers can take the excitement a step further by trying out a couple fun activities at home!
The Awesome Egg Experiment
This activity is designed to help kids understand how cavities form on teeth. You can talk about how sugary snacks, fruit juice and soda feed bacteria and produce acid that eats away teeth and causes cavities. But many children learn tactically and will like being able to feel as they learn.
Step 1: Boil an Egg. Give the egg to your child and ask them to feel the hard surface. Have your child look in the mirror and feel their teeth. Compare the hard surface of the egg with the hard surface of the teeth.
Step 2: Acid attack! Place the egg in a bowl of vinegar, covering the entire egg with vinegar. Leave the egg in the vinegar overnight. Talk about how vinegar is an acid like the acid that forms on teeth when bacteria eat sugar. Acid weakens the surface of the egg just like acid from bacteria in plaque weakens the surface of your teeth.
Step 3: Touch the Egg. After bathing in vinegar overnight, the eggshell will be gone and the soft yellow egg will remain. Have your child touch the egg and feel the squishy-softness. Talk about how plaque feeds bacteria. Then the bacteria produce acid and eat away the teeth, causing soft areas called cavities.
The Great Cookie Experiment!
Certain foods are more likely to cause cavities. Kids can learn to understand what foods will cause more problems for their teeth. Sugary, sticky foods have high substantivity and stick around for a while on the teeth. Your children can learn to recognize cavity-causing foods and either avoid them or at least remember to brush well afterwards.
Step 1: Eat an Oreo. Or two.
Step 2: Have your child look in the mirror and use your cell phone camera to take a picture of the molar teeth. The grooves of the molars will be filled with black cookie residue. Brush the cookie residue away.
Step 3: Eat a few apple, banana or orange slices. Have your child look in the mirror and take a picture of the molar teeth. Show your child the difference in what the healthy snack and the cookie snack left behind on their molar teeth. Talk about the importance of brushing, especially after unhealthy snacks that leave behind a sugary goo on the molar teeth. Talk about how food stuck in the grooves of molar teeth can cause cavities if it is not brushed away.
Whether you choose to do a fun oral-health activity with your child, or you take an extra minute brushing your child’s teeth, we can all find a small way to have a big impact in a child’s life. Tooth decay is preventable and your child’s dentist can work with you to develop an action plan for a lifetime of healthy smiles.
SKY Pediatric Dentistry is committed to improving oral health throughout South Central Kentucky and will be visiting schools and daycares for a fun-filled singing and dancing presentation on brushing and flossing. If you would like the SKY team to visit your child’s school or daycare please call us at 270-715-5437.
You can visit the website www.skypediatricdentistry.com, check us out on Facebook, email info@skypediatricdentistry.com or call 270-715-5437 for more information on the practice and to schedule an appointment.
-by Dr. Mandy Ashley, DMD, MsED, MS
About the Author: Dr. Mandy Ashley DMD, MsEd, MS is a Board Certified Pediatric Dentist and owner of SKY Pediatric Dentistry. SKY Pediatric Dentistry has locations at 234 Natchez Trace in Bowling Green and 280 Burley Ave in Hopkinsville. With over 20 years’ experience as a dentist, Dr. Ashley and her team provide modern, fun dental care for all children as well as adults with special needs.
