Teenagers are busy – school, part-time jobs, friends, sports and hobbies – and with all this excitement, their oral hygiene is usually the last thing they’re thinking about.
Many teens need orthodontic work – braces are extremely common at this age. Dr. Lily Lo and the team at Lawrence Avenue Dental are the experts on braces in Toronto. We’ll help you determine if your teen needs braces and/or other orthodontic treatment, and work with you to establish healthy oral hygiene habits for your teen.
Here’s how you can help your teens maintain healthy smiles:
- Teach them the importance of brushing and flossing. At this age, teens care more about their appearance than ever. Make sure they know that clean teeth are healthy teeth, and healthy teeth are cool! Forgetting to brush and floss can lead to discolouration, bad breath and maybe even missing teeth – all things teens don’t want to worry about.
- Be a good role model. Show your teens what it means to take care of your teeth, by doing it yourself! They’re much more likely to follow your lead then to take advice that you’re not following on your own.
- Let them choose their tools. Ask your teens about their preferences in toothpaste and floss, and let them try out different options – regular floss, pre-threaded flossers, different flavours etc. They’re more apt to use the products if they got to choose the ones they like.
- Make it easy for them. Keeping extra brushes, toothpaste and floss on-hand removes one excuse that can be used to skip out on their oral hygiene routine. Keep flossers near the TV so they have easy access at a time when they’re able to floss.
- Make healthy options the only options. You can’t control what they eat and drink outside the home, but when they’re with you, make sure they have access to healthy, natural snacks and a lot of water. The easiest way to do this? Don’t even buy the junk food or soda. If it’s not in the house, it won’t be consumed.
Maintaining a healthy smile through the teen years into adulthood is easy if you follow these tips. As always, if you have any questions feel free to reach out. Dr. Lily Lo and the team at Lawrence Avenue Dental are here to help.
