The Most Important Dental Facts for Kids

Teaching your child the benefits of a good and consistent dental routine at an early age can be a bit tricky. But if you go the extra mile to present them with important yet cool dental facts, they will be more likely to show interest in learning about their mouth and teeth. Children who are educated about proper dental hygiene also have better odds of developing consistent brushing routines into their adulthood. That said, let’s look at some of the most important dental facts for kids that you can use to explain to them the importance of dental health in general.

1. Tooth enamel is the strongest material in the human body. Take that, bones! But while the bones are capable of repairing themselves, our teeth require dental fillings and other treatments once the enamel erodes and cavities kick in. This happens because there are no living cells in it.

2. Our teeth are as unique as our fingerprints. Not even identical twins have the same sets of teeth. Yup, every single person in the world is special!

3. Tooth decay is classified as an infectious disease. There’s even a special strain of bacteria that causes cavities and can be transmitted from one family member to another, especially from mom to a child. Therefore, everyone should use their own toothbrush and cutlery.

4. Every tooth contains blood vessels and the nerve tissue inside of it. These nerve tissues allow us to experience various sensations and pain.

5. One of the major risks for cavities is eating and drinking a lot of sugary foods. To avoid it, we should eat a healthy and balanced diet rich in fiber from fruit and vegetables and make sure we drink enough water. 

6. Tooth decay is the second most common disease in the United States, right after the common cold. At the same time, it remains the most common chronic disease both in children aged 6 to 11 years and adolescents aged 12 to 19 years, according to the CDC.

7. Think that flossing isn’t that important? Better think again. If you don’t floss, you won’t clean approximately 35% of your tooth surfaces.

8. Cavities are preventable. About one-third of all cavities in primary(baby) teeth can be prevented simply by applying fluoride varnish.

9. Children under 16 can reduce cavities by 24% if they brush with fluoride toothpaste. Fluoride is the only superhero that can settle the score with cavities! The American Dental Association recommends that children over 3 use a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste every time they brush, or at least twice a day.

10. Scheduling a dental cleaning appointment twice a year will also prevent cavities. These dental appointments should also help a pediatric dentist detect any early signs of other dental infections and address the issues accordingly.

11. Our teeth start to grow in our gum while we’re still in a womb. At the moment of birth, all 20 teeth are already in our gum. Amazing, right?

12. Most kids will have all 20 primary teeth by their third birthday. And by the time we are 5 or 6 years old, our primary teeth will start to fall out, making room for our 32 permanent teeth.

13. We make around 25,000 gallons of saliva during our lifetime. This amount of saliva could easily fill up an Olympic pool. Saliva is super important because it protects tooth enamel and helps us digest food.

14. Humans have more bacteria in their mouths than there are people in the world. But these are often completely harmless. Some of them can cause illness and tooth decay, but regular brushing and flossing are usually enough to keep them in check.

15. The average person spends almost 40 days of their life brushing their teeth. But with the average American life expectancy being 79 years and with the recommended daily brushing of 4 minutes in total, we should spend at least 79 days brushing. 

16. The side we choose to chew our food on is the same as our dominant hand. For instance, if we’re right-handed, we’ll mostly chew on the right side.

17. Kids laugh approximately 400 times a day, while adults laugh only 15 times a day.

18. More than 300 types of bacteria are found in dental plaque.

19.  Only two-thirds of our tooth is visible and the rest is hidden underneath our gums.

20. We have four different types of teeth we use to cut, tear and grind foods, and they include incisors, canine, premolars, and molars.

21. For some reason, people prefer blue over red toothbrushes! Were you familiar with some of these before? What do you think about our list in general? Don’t be shy, speak up in the comments below!