Kids Learn to Floss Better When They See Their Parents Do It, Too

Posted on 12/20/2019 by Fariba Mutschler

Teaching children the importance of dental hygiene can prove to be challenging. They have short attention spans and quite frankly, better things to do than spend time in the bathroom taking care of their teeth.

Flossing at least once daily and brushing twice daily will encourage good oral health and ensure that their teeth last a lifetime. But how do parents encourage this behavior?

Lead By Example

Children watch our every move, especially when they're young and learning how to do things for themselves. Getting children to be comfortable with flossing on a regular basis is a little bit of letting them do it themselves, a little bit of a parent helping them floss and a lot of watching a parent model the behavior. Try making oral health care a daily, joint event. Mom or dad brushes their own teeth while your child brushes theirs.

Parents can help children floss from the time they have two teeth that touch. Using care and gentleness is key in helping your child refrain from damaging his or her gums. By the time your child is around age 11, he or she should be able to effectively floss on their own. Until that time, modeling good oral health care and helping your child floss is recommended.

How To Floss

•	Hold a medium length (about 10 inches long) piece of floss between your thumbs and index fingers. Gently wrap it around the index fingers so that you have better control.
•	Gently insert the floss between your child's teeth using very little pressure. A 'C' curve to the floss will insure that the floss gets around each tooth and can slide under the gum line without pain.
•	After each tooth, unwind a little more of the floss to avoid reinsertion of plaque.

If you need more tips on helping your child learn how to floss, call or stop by our office today! Our staff is well equipped to help you teach your child the skill of flossing.

My daughter was a little nervous to have her dental work done but everyone in the office was super friendly and very reassuring and that helped her nervousness go away. Thanks for the excellent dental experience. ~ Lilyana G.

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Our Dental Blog | Great Grins Pediatric Dentistry - Portland, OR
Dr. Fariba Mutschler & Dr. Mark Mutschler have created this informative blog to help educate the community. If you like an article or the dental blog in general please use the share it button to post to Facebook, Twitter, or Google+.
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