[gopalakrishna]

DS is 17 months and he won't let me brush his teeth! I have tried everything to make it fun and even giving him two brushes(one for each hand) and then trying to sneak one in myself. He wants to do it himself, but I know he is not doing a good job. I am afraid to make him scream and cry while I do it because then he will associate it with something unpleasant. He hates the flavor of the beginner toothpaste so I am just trying with water.

Any ideas? I have some success using the finger brush, but he tries to grab that away too and won't let me clean very well.

Thanks!

 

[~Charlie's~Angel~]

Honestly, FOR ME, I dont see a problem with my son associating brushing his teeth with something unpleasent if thats what its going to take to get them brushed. I would rather he groan and moan and get them brushed then have him get cavities before his baby teeth even fall out. But like i said, that is just me and how I justify having to do it myself sometimes.

I also bought him one of those electric toothbrushes because he is a button pusher and LOVES making it go zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Have you tried the Flouride free stuff from oregel? It actually smells pretty good.

 

[JudiAU]

Do you have any books with teeth brushing? That seems to be helping my 22m.

What about a funny song?

Also, he really likes this electric toothbrush we bought him. http://www.giggle.com/p/16123/Gentle...oothbrush.aspx Blessedly free of characters.

 

[PoetryMom]

My dd (16 months) loves it, but most of the time she just sucks the toothpaste off before I get a chance to get it on her teeth. So I brush often (did the same with dd1). I figure if I brush her teeth 3 to 4 times a day, that should add up to about 1 & 1/2 brushings. I use Weleda Childrens Tooth Gel (fluoride free).

You can't truly brush a toddler's teeth well. They don't really open their mouths on demand, and once you do put that toothbrush in there, they just want to bite it. The point is to get them used to the idea of brushing as a regular part of life and to scrub what you can when you can. At least they are not eating candy yet (I think), so you're probably not so concerned about cleaning that kind of sugar as much as sugars left from milk or juice. If this is a concern for you, maybe you can consider giving him water before bedtime to rinse the teeth and mouth some.

:

 

[tonimk19]

we now use one of those $5 electric toothbrushes from Target. My DD gets to brush her teeth first and then it's my turn. She's usually pretty good. I hold her on my lap when it's my turn and tell her to show Mommy her teeth/ tongue and open wide. Sometimes I'll count to 10 just so she knows that we're almost done. I usually brush my teeth right before I brush hers so she can watch and brush herself.

 

[maddycakes]

We've never really had a problem with getting her to let us help her, but about a month ago we started using Tom's of Maine Fluoride-Free Silly Strawberry toothpaste instead of the Orajel toothpaste, and started letting her stand on a chair (supervised) to watch herself in the mirror (prior to that she'd either sit on my lap on the toilet or my husband would hold her while she brushed her teeth and he brushed his). Ever since those two changes, she ASKS to brush her teeth constantly. I think she likes the taste a little better and she loves to watch herself in the mirror, so now it's more of a game for her. She also has two brushes--I ask her which one she wants to hold and which one she wants me to hold. Something about giving her some power in the process seems to help too. After she's "brushed" her teeth, I get in there with another brush and quickly go over what she's missed. We usually sing Happy Birthday twice to someone (her choice) so she knows how long to brush.

Good luck.

 

[Gator-mom]

Ok this is probably not very helpful, but I find it a little humorous for what finally worked for us..just thought I'd share..I suppose there is a small chance you might the same option....

Ds was terrible with teeth brushing. When we first started, he loved it, but then gradually as his autonomy got stronger, the teeth brushing became more of a challenge. I tried all the tricks with little success.

Well, one night I told dh to do the teeth brushing for me..as I was busy doing something else. Dh has HORRIBLE teeth problems. His birth mother was on phenobarbitol when she was pregnant so forever he's had soft teeth. Currently he has a dying tooth, which he won't even show me how bad it looks. We have no money and no insurance, so it stays in his mouth looking and probably feeling yucky. Well when ds started giving him trouble...what did he do? He showed him his "ewe" tooth..and said, this is why you brush your teeth.

Since then...no problems what-so-ever! In fact he will randomly point in his mouth and say daddy "ewe". And I just say, 'yes, that is why we have to brush your teeth! We don't want you to get an ewe tooth too!" It sucks we are stuck with this crappy dental situation, but at least SOMETHING good came out of it!

 

[gopalakrishna]

Thanks everyone! I had been meaning to get one of those electric toothbrushes...and I like the idea of having him do it himself in the mirror. I think is is tall enough now to stand on a little step stool. He might really like that...and I will keep an eye out for the Tom's toothpaste, sounds yummy

He is soooo stubborn and will NOT willingly let me in to brush, but I am going to inflict a routine on this one because this isn't really something that we can ignore! Hopefully he will start to like it after a little practice with our new ideas.

 

[Treece]

Target carries so many fl free tooth pastes 4 kids.

 

[lmk1]

To me, brushing teeth is like changing a diaper...it's something that HAS TO BE DONE. If ds isn't happy with it, then I'm sorry, but it still has to be done. We try all the tricks...brushing teeth together, electric toothbrush, xylitol paste (sweet and good for teeth) instead of trainer toothpaste, but there's no way a 17 month old can brush his own teeth well enough, so once he's done playing, we brush his teeth ... very often he's upset about it. But not as upset as if he had to go under GA to get fillings at this age. I hate it when he starts crying about it, but he's not crying because it hurts, but because he doesn't have control. The crying lasts a minute and stops the second we stop brushing. HTH!

 

[boigrrrlwonder]

Television and xylitol. Yes, I know a lot of mamas here don't like television, but I think holding a screaming toddler down is more harmful than a little TV.

 

[KLM99]

We have the same problem with my 20MO - we've had limited success with being silly. She'll let me brush her teeth a bit for some reason if I tell her I'm going to brush her tongue or her gums or her lips instead. If I tell her I have to brush the animals out of her mouth ("open wide so I can see those giraffes on your tongue!" "are those elephants in there?", etc). Also we sing a teethbrushing song while we do it or try to brush teeth while standing on one foot or while standing with a wide stance or with our hands on our head or bent over or some other silly way.

But I agree with other posters - teethbrushing, like getting in your carseat or changing your diaper, is just nonnegotiable. So if that doesn't work, tough mommy has to come out for a minute.

Maybe we'll try an electric toothbrush. Also, I had no idea that we can use toothpaste at this age - what toothpastes does everyone use?

 

[Bald_Bull's_Mama]

What we've recently started doing is brushing teeth like different animals. For a while, I'll brush his teeth like and elephant, make trumpeting noises, swing my trunk around. Then, like a lion, roar, purr, etc. So far, so good.

 

[tinyblackdot]

I have not read the pp, but with dd we go on an animal hunt. I say "open wide...lets see what we can find in there today" And then i usually "find" diffrent themed animlas, or shapes or colors. We do dinos, wedid winnie the pooh lastnight, and we do sea animlas ALOT! lol! "so then i get her to open and i say...."oh look! I see Tigger! Oh and i see rabitt too!" and keep going untill we are done.

Hope that helps some, best of luck!

 

[averlee]

There is a similar discussion happening on the gentle discipline page. I am sometimes unpopular for my ideas, but l don't believe in forced tooth-brushing. I know dental hygiene is important, but so are a child's feelings.

 

[ShyDaisi]

I usually will name off things that we have eaten that we need to get out of his mouth. I ask him, "Where is that banana at? Can I see it? Oh, we need to get rid of that!"...He will let me brush for all of 1-2 seconds, then I ask, "Now where is the chicken?" and he will open up. Usually he will come up with a suggestion or two on his own...today it was "Apple?"

I go first with the toothpaste to make sure it is doing SOME good. It depends on the day as to how long he will actually let me brush, then it is his turn to brush with water to "rinse" his teeth. I am not really anal about getting every tooth really good every single time, I just try to get all of the surface as much as allowed and then try again the next time.

I think a lot of tooth decay is genetic. I have heard of people who are extra dilligent, having a ton of cavities. And, I have heard of people who are lax about tooth care that don't have a single problem. I do what I can, but I am not going to torture him over it.

 

[youngwife]

In our house, the rules for teeth brushing with little ones (under about four or so), is that Mom (or older sibling) brushes first, then little one gets to do it.

It's just the rule.

IF little one fusses, they lose their turn.

I will say that brushing regularly is not a 100% guarantee that your child will have healthy teeth. My son was brushed religiously, and by the tender age of 6, he had an abcess! O.O I do believe that some of it is just hereditary. I never had a cavity until I was pregnant with my first. My dh, however, barely has any of his own left! :?