February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and this year’s theme is “Water, Nature’s Drink!”
Did you know there are many oral health benefits to drinking water? Here are our favorites….
- Water is a tooth friendly drink! Drinking water with fluoride “nature’s cavity fighter” is one of the easiest things you can do to strengthen teeth to help prevent cavities.
- Water washes away the bad stuff! It helps to clean teeth by washing away food debris and acid. You still need to brush twice a day for 2 minutes and floss to clean in between your teeth, but drinking water through the day will go a long way toward keeping your smile cavity free!
- Did you know that saliva is 99% water? Staying hydrated keeps your saliva flowing, prevents dry mouth, reduces your risk of gum disease and promotes fresher breathe.
- Choose water at all ages and get your daily water fill! Children 2-5 years should have 8-40 ounces of water a day or 1 to 5 cups. Tweens ages 9 to 13 should have 56 to 64 ounces, or 7-8 cups a day. Teens should drink 64-88 ounces, or 8-11 cups a day. Drink up, peeps!
- Choose Water for a zero calorie drink! Choose water over sugary drinks which are major contributors to tooth decay, obesity and type 2 diabetes in the US.
The bottom line is water is essential to good oral health! Start drinking more water today!
