Dr. Sue Keller of Strong & Healthy Smiles in Greenfield gives Kieran, 17 months, a lesson in brushing teeth, during the Brushing is for Babies program at the Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield. Photo by Mieke Zuiderweg of Sunday Republican staff.
Dentist recommends brushing for babies
By Denise Favro Schwartz
Sunday Republican (Springfield)
Sunday, September 4, 2005
Edition: Hampshire/Franklin,
Section: Hampshire & Franklin Plus, Page HFP4
dschwartz@repub.com
GREENFIELD - Dr. Sue Keller, musician, mom and dentist, encourages parents of infants to remember this: brushing is for babies.
Tooth-brushing, that is.
After every bottle, after nursing, and especially before going to bed.
Once a child's teeth are in, usually at about 6 months of age, the brushing should begin, Keller said. She recommends using a "finger" brush, the kind you might pick up at the pet supply store for brushing Brownie's incisors. Finger-brush "right at the table" with some water, Keller suggests. It's easy and doesn't take much time. After all in the beginning there is only one tooth to brush, Keller said.
To help parents begin a program of good dental health for their babies, Keller presents a monthly session at Franklin Medical Center here, that helps prevent cavities and puts youngsters on an early path to "Strong & Healthy Smiles."
Keller fills the program with easy-to-remember tips and an enormous amount of information in a breezy style that is characteristic of her out-going attitude toward dentistry. She believes that the dentist's office should be a comfortable, even (gasp) happy place. To that end, her practice provides patients with massage chairs, CDs for relaxing to favorite tunes, DVD players with personal video glasses for watching movies, and warm towels for freshening up after treatments.
Even so, Keller aspires to limit patient time in the dentist chair by starting with sensible dental health routines in babyhood. "Kindergarten is too late to start," she said.
She said it is not uncommon to see children with "mouthfuls" of cavities at ages 1 to 3. She identifies changes in the food industry and permissive parenting as contributing to it noting that 3-year-olds drinking colas and eating fruit roll ups and other sugary treats are "an everyday thing. You didn't see that when we were growing up."
The program for parents includes Keller's "Top 10 Tips for Raising a Cavity-free Kid." She stresses her most important three ideas: brush teeth after every meal, learn the proper use of flouride, and drink water, not juice.
"We all should brush after every meal," she said. "It's going to keep people safe. The only dental insurance people really need is the toothbrush, tooth paste and getting coached in how to use them properly."
©2005 The Republican Company. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Committed to the prevention
of dental conditions she sees in some of her
adult patients, Dr. Sue leads a free, informative discussion
on infant and toddler tooth care as part of
Franklin Medical Center’s infant education classes.
Dr Sue is also available to speak to private groups
on preventive dental care for any age group on
request.
