All About Teeth

Keeping teeth clean is important for good dental health. A regular routine will help keep teeth healthy and decay-free.

Teeth are useful for cutting, tearing and chewing food. Teeth break up food into little pieces, making it easier to swallow and digest. There are four types of teeth;

• • Incisors are for biting and cutting.
  • Canines are for tearing.
  • Premolars are for chewing.
  • Molars are for mashing.

By around the age of three children will have all 20 of their baby teeth. When they reach five or six years old, these teeth will begin to fall out and are replaced by 32 adult teeth.

You should start brushing your baby's teeth as soon as the first tooth appears. This is usually at about 6 months old, but can be earlier or later.

Why We Brush Teeth

If teeth are not cleaned properly, a sticky substance known as plaque sticks to the tooth enamel (the hard white outer covering of our teeth).

Plaque contains bacteria that will feed on the sugars and acids left over from food and drink in your mouth. This can cause tooth decay and gum disease.

If plaque is not removed it turns to ‘tartar’ which is hard and discolours the teeth.

Brushing teeth twice a day is an easy way to get rid of bacteria and acid so that they do not cause lasting damage to teeth and gums.

Supervised Toothbrushing

At Emneth Nursery School we have implemented supervised toothbrushing. This is done with our 3 and 4 year olds, when they do full days in Orchards. We supply all of the toothbrushes etc so you do not need to worry about anything. This does not however replace your toothbrushing routine at home.