When choosing a toothpaste for a child, it is recommended to adhere to several criteria - one of the most important is adherence to age recommendations, which should be indicated by the manufacturer on the packaging. It is necessary to pay attention to both the composition and taste.
Some parents think that milk teeth do not need sufficient care - they will still change to permanent ones anyway. It is not right. When decayed, milk teeth become a source of harmful bacteria, not to mention how painful it can be for a child.
How to choose toothpaste for your child
It is necessary to focus primarily on the age of the child.
On average, a child's first teeth can appear at about six months. Even for such babies, you can pick up a special toothpaste. Formulations for children aged "0 to 4" are such that if they enter the alimentary tract, they do not harm the child. They have a reduced content of fluorides and a very small amount of active components like sodium lauryl sulfate, that is, a foaming agent, fragrances and various dyes. In addition, compared to pastes for adults, these are slightly abrasive. Fluorine content - up to 200 ppm.
From four to eight years of age, children's teeth begin to change from milk to permanent, and the paste must be selected taking into account such features. The selected composition should reduce the risk of caries and help reduce the discomfort that is inevitable when changing teeth. RDA - abrasiveness index - should be no more than 50 so that cleaning is soft and does not injure newly formed enamel. Fluorine should be no more than 500 ppm.
The next age group is from eight to fourteen years old. Permanent teeth predominate - the fluoride content is permissible up to 1400 ppm, the RDA should remain no more than 50.
What constituents can be in toothpastes
Most children's toothpastes contain components such as fluorides, abrasives, foaming agents, preservatives, binders, and flavorings.
Abrasives are sodium bicarbonate and calcium carbonate, or simply soda and chalk. In modern pastes, silicon or titanium dioxides are more often used - the cost of the paste, of course, increases, but these abrasives hurt the enamel less and act more efficiently.
With the help of fluorides, you can strengthen the enamel of the teeth, but in large quantities they can harm the body due to their toxicity. Antibacterial pastes should not be overused either - they are able to cope with harmful bacteria, but useful ones are also hard to come by.
Lactoferrin, lysozyme, glucose oxide are useful lactic enzymes for strengthening the immune system.
When choosing a toothpaste for a child, you need to pay attention to the price. Quality pasta has a higher price. The content of fluoride in the paste should be as low as possible - children of this age have enough fluoride obtained from water and food.
