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January 2013 Moms
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Toothbrushing tips?

ReeceFamilyReeceFamily member
in January 2013 Moms
Anyone have any brilliant tips on getting your child to brush their teeth?  This is sort of a major parenting fail for me.  I bought DD a toothbrush ages ago and tried to make it "fun" - I have her watch us brush our teeth, get her to imitate, which she does a bit.  But now that she is a toddler, she needs to actually BRUSH, right, which she can't quite manage on her own.  But when I try to "help", she clamps her mouth shut and/or starts screaming and crying if I do manage to get the toothbrush in her mouth.  

I've tried to make it a game, with minimal success (and I'm sort of not feeling creative about how to make it seem fun).  We have 3 kinds of toothbrushes, and I've tried the electronic ones and she thinks they are fun to play with, but gets freaked out when she puts them in her mouth.

I know that it's very important for toddlers to feel in control of their own bodies, and I feel like I'm violating her every night :(.  On the other hand, it's really important to me that she doesn't get cavities/that we maintain her oral health.

I'm sort of at a loss.  Any ideas/experiences that I could try?
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Re: Toothbrushing tips?

  • jobiannjobiann member
    Amen. DS hates having his teeth brushed as well. And then I slack off on it....I need to just be diligent about it and hope he'll settle into a routine.

    Henry Cavill...You're welcome!

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  • princessbmwprincessbmw member
    Getting the no fluoride kids toothpaste made a world of difference for us. I hold ds on my lap and tip him upside down to get the top teeth. It's like trying to brush a monkey's teeth though!
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  • OhBaby+2013OhBaby+2013 member
    I just discovered this week at if I give DS his brush and brush my teeth at the same time he kind of imitates. BUT. If I give him his brush then use an adult size brush to brush his teeth he thinks that's fun, so he has both in his mouth at the same time. Lol.
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  • Little DawsonLittle Dawson member
    For us we're doing the non fluoride tooth paste, and occasionally I do have to hold her bottom jaw down with my thumb on her chin just so she doesn't close and suck the paste off the brush. I do think that just having it as a normal routine makes a huge difference. We've been brushing DDs teeth since about 6 months and now when we go through the bed time routine, she normally just opens her mouth to accept some brushing. I think explaining what is happening can help a lot, even if they don't fully understand it yet. GL with it, she will get used to the routine soon!
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  • ReeceFamilyReeceFamily member
    Little Dawson said:
    For us we're doing the non fluoride tooth paste, and occasionally I do have to hold her bottom jaw down with my thumb on her chin just so she doesn't close and suck the paste off the brush. I do think that just having it as a normal routine makes a huge difference. We've been brushing DDs teeth since about 6 months and now when we go through the bed time routine, she normally just opens her mouth to accept some brushing. I think explaining what is happening can help a lot, even if they don't fully understand it yet. GL with it, she will get used to the routine soon!
    Well, good to know so many of you are in the same boat.  And, @Little Dawson, yes, thank you for the reminder.  I agree that we should be talking/explaining stuff to our kids, and I am not consistent about doing so!!!
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  • spainy17spainy17 member
    We just learned the upside down thing too! I tip her backwards and make her giggle and it makes her mouth open so I get easier access! :-)
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  • ReeceFamilyReeceFamily member
    TarHeelMomToBe said:
    DD loves brushing her teeth -- I bought her this tooth "brush":

    I think it helps that there aren't rough bristles -- she'll brush and chew for 30 minutes.
    We have tried this one, too.  She will chew on it for a bit, so maybe that is helping with her dental health more than I realized!
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  • DCKateDCKate member
    I'm glad this was posted, because DD basically eats the toothpaste while I spend five minutes trying to get her to brush for at least 10 seconds.
    Our little Samosa arrives in January!
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