Pediatric Oral Care
Your child's oral care guide — first tooth through age 11
Night is the important one. After the night brush, have them spit and not rinse. Nothing to eat or drink after.
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First tooth – age 2
Brush: Twice a day. A soft baby brush and a smear of fluoride toothpaste the size of a grain of rice.
Clean between: As soon as any 2 teeth touch.
Mouthwash: Not yet.
Who does it: You do, all of it.
Also: No juice before their first birthday, and no bottle in bed.
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Ages 3 – 5
Brush: Twice a day. Move up to a pea-sized amount, and teach them to spit it out rather than swallow.
Clean between: Once a day, wherever teeth touch.
Mouthwash: Not yet. Most children this age can’t reliably spit.
Who does it: You still do it, or closely help.
Also: Thumb-sucking and pacifiers are normal but aim to stop by age 3.
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Ages 6 – 8
Brush: Twice a day, 2 full minutes, pea-sized. Spit, don’t rinse.
Clean between: Once a day, start teaching them to do it themselves around 7 to 8.
Mouthwash: Optional. ACT Kids fluoride rinse, mornings after brushing, once they can swish and spit reliably.
Who does it: They brush; you supervise and re-brush anything missed.
Also: The first permanent molars arrive now. Ask us about sealants.
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Ages 9 – 11
Brush: Twice a day, 2 full minutes. Spit, don’t rinse.
Clean between: Once a day, on their own.
Mouthwash: Optional. ACT Kids fluoride rinse, mornings after brushing.
Who does it: Mostly independent. Keep spot-checking. At 12 they’re ready for our adult guide.
What to Buy & What to Watch
Getting the basics right: the products that matter, and the habits that cause cavities.
A Few Milestones
- First dental visit by age 1, or within six months of the first tooth.
- Fluoride rinse starts at age 6, once they can swish and spit without swallowing.
- Brushing well on their own around 8 to 10.
- At age 12, they’re ready for our regular adult routine.
What We Recommend For Kids
Fluoride toothpaste
The same fluoride as adult toothpaste, just in kid-friendly flavors. Look for the ADA Seal, and use the right amount for their age — a rice-grain smear under 3, a pea from 3 up.
ACT Kids Anticavity Mouthrinse
This is optional. Alcohol-free, once a day in the morning, for ages 6 and up who can reliably spit. Not at night. it would rinse away the stronger fluoride from their toothpaste.
A soft, small-headed brush
Manual or a kids' electric brush with a built-in timer, which makes getting to 2 minutes easier. Replace brush or brush head when bristles fray or after illness.
Keep it out of reach
Store toothpaste and rinse where younger children can't help themselves. Swallowing toothpaste regularly can mark developing adult teeth.
Protecting the New Back Teeth
Sealants
A thin protective coating painted into the deep grooves of the back teeth, where most childhood cavities start. Quick, painless, and no numbing needed. Usually done as the first permanent molars arrive around age 6.
Fluoride varnish
Brushed onto the teeth in seconds during a normal visit. Usually every 6 months, or every 3 to 6 months if your child is at higher risk of cavities.
Bottles, Sippy Cups, & Snacks
- Never at bedtime. No bottle of milk, formula, or juice in bed. Water only. During sleep, salivary flow decreases, and sugar sits against the teeth for hours.
- No juice before age 1, and only small amounts with meals after that. Move from bottle to open cup at around the first birthday.
- The all-day sippy cup of juice or milk is the same problem in slow motion. Keep sweet drinks to mealtimes.
- Frequency beats quantity. Two cookies at once is easier on the teeth than one cookie six times across the day. Each snack starts a fresh acid attack.
- Sticky is worse than sweet. Gummy vitamins, fruit snacks, and crackers wedge into the grooves and stay. Follow them with water.
Habits & Emergencies
Helping them along: including the one page you’ll want to have read before you need it.
Everyday Habits
Thumbs & pacifiers
Both are normal in the early years. Aim to have the habit stop by age 3. After that it starts to affect how the teeth and bite develop.
Making it easier
Brush together, let them pick a flavor, try a 2-minute song. Lay a toddler’s head in your lap rather than standing over them — better view, more control.
Emergency: a knocked-out permanent tooth
What you do in the first few minutes decides whether the tooth survives.
- Pick the tooth up by the crown — the white chewing part. Never touch the root.
- If it’s dirty, rinse it briefly in milk. Not water, and never scrub it.
- If you can, slot it back into the socket the right way round and have them bite gently on a clean cloth.
- If you can’t, put it in a cup of milk — water damages the cells that let it reattach.
- Call us immediately. Minutes matter.
Also call us if
- A baby tooth is knocked out: do NOT put it back in — it can damage the permanent tooth underneath.
- Facial swelling, or tooth pain with a fever — call the same day
- A chipped or cracked tooth, or any blow to the mouth
- A toothache that wakes them at night, or lasts more than a day
- White or brown marks along the gumline of the front teeth
See Related At-Home Tips
Age 12 or older?
Explore Our Adult Oral Care Tips
