How Do You Get a Toddler to Brush His Teeth?

[tommy]

Anyone have any ideas?

My 2 yr old boy will put the brush in his mouth and just kind of bite down and chew on it until the toothpaste is gone, and then he's done. The teeth aren't getting brushed. We've tried a few things -- mommy or daddy brushing too, pretending to brush his favorite plaything/little animal's teeth, brute force, and none of it has worked. The doctor says it's important to get em brushed and we can't seem to find anything that works. Anyone?

[DukePA]

Anyone have any ideas?

My 2 yr old boy will put the brush in his mouth and just kind of bite down and chew on it until the toothpaste is gone, and then he's done. The teeth aren't getting brushed. We've tried a few things -- mommy or daddy brushing too, pretending to brush his favorite plaything/little animal's teeth, brute force, and none of it has worked. The doctor says it's important to get em brushed and we can't seem to find anything that works. Anyone?

Will he let you brush his teeth? I used to work for a pedodontist and that's what we recommended until the kids turned 3 or so. Some 3 year olds would brush their own teeth, but many still required parental brushing. You can always try bribes!

[SouthgateWindsor]

Get him invested in brushing. Take him to the store and have him pick out his toothbrush(of course, you limit his selection to age-appropriate ones with soft bristles, etc.)

Have him pick out the toothpaste, too. Again, age-appropriate. Some dentists recommend flouride-free (since most kids that age don't spit). Check w/yours.

Then, make it a "team" effort. Say, "okay, you'll start and I'll finish" or "I'll start and you finish". Buy a cute egg timer and put it in the bathroom. Set the egg timer to 1 minute or 2 and let him brush. Then you follow up with a thorough brushing. Time while you brush, too, to distract him.

Good luck.

[tommy]

Will he let you brush his teeth? I used to work for a pedodontist and that's what we recommended until the kids turned 3 or so. Some 3 year olds would brush their own teeth, but many still required parental brushing. You can always try bribes!

He won't let us! So frustrating. It would only take us a minute but he won't hear of it. Ugh!

[tommy]

Get him invested in brushing. Take him to the store and have him pick out his toothbrush(of course, you limit his selection to age-appropriate ones with soft bristles, etc.)

Have him pick out the toothpaste, too. Again, age-appropriate. Some dentists recommend flouride-free (since most kids that age don't spit). Check w/yours.

Then, make it a "team" effort. Say, "okay, you'll start and I'll finish" or "I'll start and you finish". Buy a cute egg timer and put it in the bathroom. Set the egg timer to 1 minute or 2 and let him brush. Then you follow up with a thorough brushing. Time while you brush, too, to distract him.

Good luck.

Thanks. Team effort is something maybe we could emphasize more. And we could try the timer. THough I'm not sure a timer will work when he won't let us in there in the first place!

He already has a brush he likes and he likes the toothpaste -- that's why when he's done chewing on the brush and the toothpaste is gone, he loses interest. THanks for your suggestions.

[dukemomLA]

If your toddler won't let you brush his teeth, give him some toothpaste on his finger and let him go to town. And if nothing works, give him some milkbones to chew on. (Yummy -- truly)

[TheRose77]

Get him a little stand-up mirror to place on the sink so he can see each tooth. I always told my kids to make sure to give "each little soldier" a good scrubbing, and don't leave out the ones in the back, it will hurt their feelings.
Good luck.

[Highlander]

Our son is 4, but here's how we do it:

I hold my son's head against my stomach with my hand across his forehead to keep him steady. I found that if I didn't hold him steady, I'd poke him or he'd turn away. I don't have to hold him hard, but just enough so he doesn't fight. Then have him say "EEEEE". That way I can get the front of the teeth. Then I have him say "AHHH" as big as he can, and I get the tops and backs. I always let him go first, then I come behind him and finish. At first we had to force the issue a bit, but once he got the hang of it he was much better. I also make a point to praise him when (or if) he's doing things right.

One other thing - our dentist said that little kids don't get a ton of buildup, and it's not really necessary to take them to the dentist until they are about 3 and a half. Even then, the last appointment my son had (his first), all they did was polish. The important thing is to establish a routine and stick with it no matter what.

[alteran]

Thanks. Team effort is something maybe we could emphasize more. And we could try the timer. THough I'm not sure a timer will work when he won't let us in there in the first place!

He already has a brush he likes and he likes the toothpaste -- that's why when he's done chewing on the brush and the toothpaste is gone, he loses interest. THanks for your suggestions.

I have a stubborn toddler who thinks it's HI-larious to chomp on the toothbrush when I'm trying to brush him.

We've moved to a motorized brush that looks like Winnie the Pooh. Since moving to the motor/motion, he still clamps down but he immediately releases, and the motor lets us brush the teeth faster.

Good luck.

[blublood]

This thread is frightening me. And teeth brushing is going to end up being a BIG deal at our house because my husband has terrible teeth.

[johnb]

wait 20 years

[Matches]

I still brush my 4 year old daughters' teeth, and sometimes the 6-year old. The oldest started sort of doing it herself around the time she turned 5, but I still do it sometimes to make sure they get good and clean. I don't think either of them were ready for that at age 2.

[Lid]

Let him brush your teeth first (or offer that as a reward if he lets you brush his teeth). When all else fails, we've tickled our kids (or held their noses) to make them laugh, then attacked with the brush.

[Mal]

Our daughter (3.5 yrs.) has a great dentist who immediately built up a rapport, so that was our first tool. After her first visit (2-2.5 yrs?), we pretended to do the "dentist chair" when we brushed her teeth for her - she'd lay across our lap while we held her head up with one hand and brushed with the other. She thought that was cool and it built up familiarity with the brushing process. Eventually she just wanted to do it herself. We also made a big deal out of how fun spitting is, so she broke the habit of swallowing all the toothpaste pretty quickly.

The good news is, if you have a second kid, they won't need nearly as much cajoling because they'll think whatever their older sibling is doing is awesome. Our little guy is 1.5 yrs. and he already demands that we let him brush his teeth (with the baby toothpaste). He actually wields the brush fairly well on occasion, instead of just sucking the water off it.