Oral Health Care during Pregnancy

Dietary Advice

During pregnancy, a balanced diet is essential for the development of the foetus. The expectant mother should have well balanced meals. She should also take sufficient quantities at meal times and avoid frequent in-between meals. However, if she happens to feel hungry in between meals, she should take nutritious yet non-cariogenic (not causing tooth decay) snacks such as boiled egg, cheese, milk and some raw vegetables. She should take sufficient quantities to avoid the need for frequent snacking in-between meals. In addition, she should try to refrain from taking acidic foods such as preserved plums, lemons, tangerine skins...etc. to prevent the teeth from being eroded by acids, which leads to "tooth sensitivity".

Related topics: Eat appropriately (Leaflet) (PDF)

Oral Care Habits

To maintain good oral hygiene, the expectant mother should brush her teeth in the morning and before bed at night with fluoride toothpaste and use dental floss everyday. If she vomits or needs to eat more frequently, she should use fluoride mouth rinse to get additional protection against tooth decay.

Related topics:
Toothbrushing method
Using dental floss
Oral Health for the Expectant Mother (Leaflet) (PDF)

Dental Check-up

Even if the expectant mother has had a pre-pregnancy dental check-up and had all the dental problems treated, she still needs to have another dental check-up during pregnancy. This is because expectant mothers may have a higher risk of getting dental problems. The best timing is at 4th to 6th month of pregnancy, because at this stage the foetus is most stable. She should also inform the dentist that she is pregnant. If dental treatment is necessary, she should choose the simple, palliative treatment and leave the more complicated treatment after giving birth. This could avoid discomfort during lengthy treatment procedures. She should wait until she has given birth to receive comprehensive dental treatment. If it is not necessary, she should not take X-ray.