Dental health for young children

Tooth decay is the most common dental disease affecting toddlers, children and young people in England. Every child who has teeth is at risk of tooth decay.

To help keep your child's teeth healthy, you should:

• supervise children under 7 years old when they brush their teeth
• encourage your child to brush twice a day - the last thing before bed and at one other time during the day
• use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste with at least 1,000ppm of fluoride (up to 1,500ppm if recommended by your dentist)
• make sure children spit the toothpaste out after brushing but do not rinse their mouth
• provide a healthy balanced diet and limit sugary foods and drinks to mealtimes
• use a toothbrushing diary for your child and encourage them to complete it every time they brush
• use the free Brush DJ app - it plays 2 minutes of music to time brushing and sets reminders for brushing and visiting the dentist

Added protection against tooth decay for children

From the age of 3, children should be offered fluoride varnish application at least twice a year for added protection against tooth decay. 

Once your child's permanent back teeth have started to come through (usually at the age of about 6 or 7) fissure sealants can be done to protect them against decay.

Ask your dentist about fluoride varnish or fissure sealing for your children - it's free.

Useful resources

Find out more about:

• taking care of children’s teeth
• NHFT’s oral health guide for children and parents - YouTube
• Dr Ranj Supertooth’s healthy teeth guides for children

Last updated 15 September 2025