2 Tips For Keeping Your Child's Removable Space Maintainer Bacteria Free
Your child's baby teeth are considered to be placeholders for their permanent teeth. If the tooth falls out or is removed too early, then this can cause new teeth to grow in crooked. This happens because the missing tooth creates a gap that throws the rest of your child's teeth out of alignment. A removable space maintainer can be worn by your child in order to prevent this from happening. While a removable space maintainer can be beneficial for protecting the health of your child's teeth, it can also cause bacteria growth. Fortunately, there are a few tips that you can use to keep your child's removable space maintainer bacteria free.
Soak the Removable Space Maintainer in an Antibacterial Rinse After Each meal
A removable space maintainer needs to be worn throughout the entire day in order to keep teeth in place. However, it can typically be removed when it is time for your child to eat. Before eating, soak the removable space maintainer in an antibacterial rinse in order to keep it clean. You can purchase a commercial rinse from the store or you can create your own from home using fresh mint leaves and lemon.
In order to create the mint rinse, soak the leaves in hot water and add lemon juice. Allow the rinse to cool for a few minutes, then place the maintainer in the mixture. This can be done while your child eats so that the maintainer is ready once they are done with their meal. The maintainer should be placed into a clean mouth. This will help to limit the transfer of bacteria.
Avoid Giving Your Child Sugary Drinks While They Wear the Maintainer
While your child may remove their maintainer each time they decide to eat, they most likely will not do this when it is time to drink beverages. As a result, sugary drinks can cause bacteria growth on their space maintainer. If the space maintainer is not cleaned for hours, then this can also lead to tooth decay in your child's tooth. in order to avoid this, limit your child's drinks to things like water and other sugarless drinks. If they do decide to drink juice or soda, the removable maintainer should be cleaned immediately afterwards.
Wearing a removable space maintainer will take some getting used to. How well the maintainer works relies on how well you maintain it. Therefore, use these tips to help keep the removal maintainer bacteria free. Your dentist, like those at Alliance Family Dental, can give you more thorough instructions on maintenance.