What to do if isolation has caused you and your family to neglect your dental care
How to fix the pandemic trap of frequent snacking on sugary foods during lockdown, and missed dental appointments that cause tooth decay.
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Cooped-up inside for months thanks to the pandemic, more and more Australian children are snacking on sugar — with lollies and chocolates the new household currency.
Prior to the pandemic about 10 per cent of Aussie kids up to the age of 14 had never been to the dentist and about a quarter of kids aged five to six had tooth decay.
And dealing with the pandemic pushed struggling parents and homeschooled kids to snack more on damaging foods and miss out on scheduled check-ups, dental health expert Professor Kaye Robert-Thomson said.
But there are critical steps to take now to minimise the damage caused.
“During the lockdown, dentistry was severely curtailed and even as places opened up a bit more, people were avoiding going out unless necessary,” she said.
“Before the pandemic nearly 50 per cent of kids were having four or more sugar-containing snacks a day and one in five of them were having four or more sugar-sweetened drinks a day.
“That’s a lot of sugar and it would have got worse during the pandemic.”
Expert advice includes keeping tabs on sugar and soft drink intake, scheduling and attending appointments, and teaching kids they are the ones responsible for looking after their teeth.
Prof Robert-Thomson said many parents had the misconception that kids do not need to go the dentist at a young age.
“You should start taking kids to the dentist at ages two to three. Not only is it good for their teeth but it allows kids to get used to going to the dentist and getting a ride in the chair,” she said.
“It’s much healthier not only for their teeth but their health generally to be drinking tap water and having non-sugary snacks, and then for them to be brushing their teeth twice a day. Only about half the kids do that.
“A lot of people underestimate the impact dental health can have on our lives.”
If tooth decay is not caught early on it can cause severe pain to the child, possibly laying the groundwork for dental anxiety.
“If you get dental decay early enough it makes a big difference and you may be able to avoid a filling. A lot of sugar can cause severe decay from a very early age and sometimes we see kids under five needing general anaesthetics to take out teeth because they are in such a bad shape,” she said.
“The pain from toothache can be really nasty and you don’t want kids waking up in the night in pain or not being able to eat. It can be quite debilitating.”
Mum Nikita Sharma admits it can be hard to stop kids from relying on sugary snacks so she takes extra care in packing healthy snacks for daughter Myra.
“My husband is very particular about her teeth and she brushes her teeth twice a day,” Ms Sharma said.
“In her childcare, since the age of two, they have a regular dentist who comes to check their teeth and since she turned five, we also take her to a dentist ourselves.
“Kids have a lot of access to snacks after school but I am very conscious of what I pack in her lunch. She doesn’t drink any sugary drinks but I do allow her to have a lolly if she’s eaten her healthy snacks, like fruit.”
Six-year-old Myra added: “I brush my teeth twice but I know I have to do it so my teeth don’t get cavities because then I have to go to the dentist.”
Mum Kylie Ironside said she’s lucky her son Aidan loves going to the dentist.
“He brushes twice a day and I watch him brush at least once a day to make sure I know he’s not missing any places and doing it properly,” she said.
“The dentist is very good and points out any areas that need more improvement.”
Originally published as What to do if isolation has caused you and your family to neglect your dental care