Care of teeth for toddlers

kellyrn9956

OK, so my son is one. He has 8 teeth. My first question is how to get them brushed, and do they need to be brushed twice a day every day at this age? I would assume yes, but he truly abhors having his teeth brushed. Even the little finger brush thing puts him in a tizzy. I'm lucky if I get a good brushing once every two days. 

Second, anyone on a well have their ped put them on fluoride supplements? I told our ped at our 12 month visit yesterday that I was ready to move him to our well water from bottled water, and he said that was absolutely fine, but that we would need to give fluoride supplements. 

NeneCakies

We try to brush twice a day (DD is 19 months). We had a horrible time with it and some days are still better than others. Some good advice I got was to try to use a brush with soft food on it to get them used to the feel of it in their mouth to overcome sensory issues. Making a big deal out of the routine might help kids look forward to it and a fun battery operated brush was a big hit as well.

We are also on well water and use fluoride supplements. Our pedi said half the "normal" dose would suffice (.25 mL). We are supposed to give it orally but we just dose her daily sippy cup instead. That might be wrong but it's easier.

kellyrn9956

We are using the same dosage - 0.25mL

It does seem sensory, so that's a good idea with trying to make it feel a little different for him. He also has a very hard time with being confined or restrained in any way, so getting his teeth brush is a test of his patience. 

randomsalpal

Check with your water company, most already have flouride in the water or you can buy bottled water with it in it. I agree with letting him try to brush his teeth himself and then going from their. With my youngest, we brushed his teddy bear's teeth first and then his, it worked. Good luck!

NeneCakies

OP is on well water. However it couldn't hurt to have it tested. We did and found we did have trace amounts of fluoride in it but not enough to stop supplementing.

wiggyslilsis

We brush DD's teeth twice a day and we skipped the finger brush well because neither of us likes getting bitten.

I say Mommy first and I brush her teeth and then I give it to her and she brushes her teeth. She loves brushing her own teeth so that helps a lot.

We have her on fluoride drops as well.

TiffanyBerry

We battled with toothbrushing for a long time until I let DD watch something on the iPad while I brushed her teeth.  Now it's no struggle at all.  (And we tried all those other suggestions, and any other ones I read online as well.)  I know it's not everyone's favorite method, but it's darn effective for us.

EandIMommy86

I get a GOOD brushing in once a day. It is a major battle with her trying to brush her teeth.