At what age can you/should you totally drop the rope on food choices?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Goldfish are not causing cavities.

1+. And I say this as someone who is cavity prone and knows the “list” of “no’s.” Seems like this is just a stealth way to police her diet. (She’s never going to have a cracker again?) Keep junk food out of the house, discuss food/ drinks that are problematic, develop good dental hygiene habits, then let it go.

OP here. I swear I don't want to police her diet. We are all thin and not diet-restrictive at all. My husband is cavity prone like DD, but my other child and I are not. We all eat very similarly. I have no personal vendetta against crackers or pretzels, etc. More than one dentist have specifically called this foods out because they sit in molars and grooves.

Doesn’t she have sealants? We all have deep grooves and got cavities in every single one and nowhere else ever until we got them all filled (with fillings or sealants). I completely agree that it’s unavoidable if that’s just the shape of her teeth, but also know that diet changes won’t stop it until the grooves are filled. But if she’s getting cavities in other places, then it’s likely weak enamel and she needs dietary and behavioral changes, plus more fluoride treatments.

If it’s her enamel, then you keep parenting because she needs to learn to brush and rinse more frequently, particularly after certain foods. If it’s her grooves, then just fill them and drop the rope.

I never got sealants and when I asked my dentist about it as an adult while he was suggesting it for my 6 yr old DD he said when he and I were kids, it was just done for poor kids who only saw a dentist at public school because they didn't think those parents were getting their kids to brush or floss. He said it's too late as an adult.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Goldfish are not causing cavities.

1+. And I say this as someone who is cavity prone and knows the “list” of “no’s.” Seems like this is just a stealth way to police her diet. (She’s never going to have a cracker again?) Keep junk food out of the house, discuss food/ drinks that are problematic, develop good dental hygiene habits, then let it go.

OP here. I swear I don't want to police her diet. We are all thin and not diet-restrictive at all. My husband is cavity prone like DD, but my other child and I are not. We all eat very similarly. I have no personal vendetta against crackers or pretzels, etc. More than one dentist have specifically called this foods out because they sit in molars and grooves.

Doesn’t she have sealants? We all have deep grooves and got cavities in every single one and nowhere else ever until we got them all filled (with fillings or sealants). I completely agree that it’s unavoidable if that’s just the shape of her teeth, but also know that diet changes won’t stop it until the grooves are filled. But if she’s getting cavities in other places, then it’s likely weak enamel and she needs dietary and behavioral changes, plus more fluoride treatments.

If it’s her enamel, then you keep parenting because she needs to learn to brush and rinse more frequently, particularly after certain foods. If it’s her grooves, then just fill them and drop the rope.

I never got sealants and when I asked my dentist about it as an adult while he was suggesting it for my 6 yr old DD he said when he and I were kids, it was just done for poor kids who only saw a dentist at public school because they didn't think those parents were getting their kids to brush or floss. He said it's too late as an adult.

I still get sealants as an adult. Why would it be too late - we can still get cavities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Give this kid a toothbrush and toothpaste. After she eats or drinks, tell her to brush. It will really help to get the food out of her teeth. And if she can't brush right away, teach her to take a big swig of water to get things off of her teeth.

She does this and has for a long time.

Right after eating or drinking, the mouth is in an acidic state and the brushing can cause excessive loss of enamel. My dentist said to wait about 30-60 minutes after eating or drinking before brushing. Right after eating she can rinse her mouth well with water and maybe use a toothpick/floss.

Foods like carrots or apples or celery can help get crackers out of the grooves, so if it's part of a meal like school lunch when brushing isn't convenient, end with those foods. My dentist agrees that crackers are a culprit, so maybe encourage eating those first, then ending with a veggie.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Goldfish are not causing cavities.

1+. And I say this as someone who is cavity prone and knows the “list” of “no’s.” Seems like this is just a stealth way to police her diet. (She’s never going to have a cracker again?) Keep junk food out of the house, discuss food/ drinks that are problematic, develop good dental hygiene habits, then let it go.

OP here. I swear I don't want to police her diet. We are all thin and not diet-restrictive at all. My husband is cavity prone like DD, but my other child and I are not. We all eat very similarly. I have no personal vendetta against crackers or pretzels, etc. More than one dentist have specifically called this foods out because they sit in molars and grooves.

Doesn’t she have sealants? We all have deep grooves and got cavities in every single one and nowhere else ever until we got them all filled (with fillings or sealants). I completely agree that it’s unavoidable if that’s just the shape of her teeth, but also know that diet changes won’t stop it until the grooves are filled. But if she’s getting cavities in other places, then it’s likely weak enamel and she needs dietary and behavioral changes, plus more fluoride treatments.

If it’s her enamel, then you keep parenting because she needs to learn to brush and rinse more frequently, particularly after certain foods. If it’s her grooves, then just fill them and drop the rope.

I never got sealants and when I asked my dentist about it as an adult while he was suggesting it for my 6 yr old DD he said when he and I were kids, it was just done for poor kids who only saw a dentist at public school because they didn't think those parents were getting their kids to brush or floss. He said it's too late as an adult.

I still get sealants as an adult. Why would it be too late - we can still get cavities.

Sealants are just a cash money maker for dentists. Honest dentists don’t do them.

[Anonymous]

It’s not realistic to think you can successfully police her food anymore. The more of an issue you make now, the more likely she is to totally rebel when she heads to college. She’s heard you, she’s heard the dentist. At some point she’s going to have to deal with the consequences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is genetic. Drop it. She gets cavities. It isn’t the end of the world

+1, I am prone to them. Brush twice a day, floss, mouth rinse - whole routine. DH brushes once a day, occasionally flosses - never gets cavities.

[Anonymous]

I have an almost 18 yo college bound senior. I stopped monitoring daily food intake long ago. But I still look at the big picture and try to steer and correct from time to time. Often that means simply posing a question as to whether they can find a healthier snack. Other times it’s imposing a soft limit on how much processed foods are being added to the grocery list or thrown into the cart. Some of that is because of the expense, so I may ask how much an item is priced. Some of it is health related and I may suggest that the number of processed foods bought for week be reduced. Overall, my focus is encouraging DC to think about smart buying choices and smart nutritional choices.