brushing a 2-year-old's teeth

[zgma]

My son refuses to let me help him with his toothbrushing (which mostly consists of sucking the water and toothpaste off the brush). Every once in a while I manage to get a toothbrush in there and scrub like mad, but usually it's impossible, and it turns into a struggle. I don't want to turn this into a power issue with him, but I'm worried about the health of his teeth, and I need some tips on getting him to let me get in there and really clean.

[SteveD]

Explain to him the importance of cleaning teeth. Get him a child's electric brush (let him choose one from the range on display).

[andy hughes]

Children of this age are keen to assert themselves, and routines like mealtimes and bathroom ettiquette are ideal times to make a bit of a stand. What you need to do is make a game of it, give his brush a name, and make teeth cleaning a 'visit' to his teeth from his friend. Do a running comentary to distract him while you clean his teeth - gently at first so he doesn't feel 'invaded', and maybe a simple reward at the end - a kiss and hug for example. Kids are good at manipulation, you just have to be better!

[undercovers]

tickle him and when he laughs / smiles get brushing

[Lindy Loo]

Good idea about making at a game. I remember an old advert for toothpast and the jingle was "Up and down, up and down, Till they're clean and shiny" ....another on for the nursery rhyme list! The other idea is do your teeth at the same time, but suggest he cleans yours while you clean his 'then' let him do his own or just hold his hand and gently guide the brush! Either way give plenty of praise..Well done..thanks for helping to clean my teeth..what a good boy etc. That way he thinks he is doing you a favour, not doing as he is told! Also keep sugary things to a minimum and check the labels on squash/juice. It's amazing how much sugar there is in them.

[morg_monster]

A little 3 yr old girl I used to babysit for had an electric toothbrush which sang a song to her while she was brushing, it would go through the song twice and then she knew she had brushed for long enough! Maybe you could pick a song to sing that lasts about 2 minutes, that might distract him! Saying that though I'm sure i never brush for as long as 2 minutes, and I don't have any problems with my teeth...! One more thing, when I was about 5 I really hated the taste of mint and couldn't stand to use toothpaste, the dentist told my mum it didn't really matter if I just used water as long as I had a decent brush twice a day, drank milk or water after dinner to 'rinse' my mouth a bit, and didn't suck on too many sweets! I'm sure sugary sweets and drinks are more of a threat to his oral health than how long he brushes for.

[hectic]

Hi, my nephew is 2yrs old also and I found that if you brush your teeth at the same time and give him his toothbrush and tell him to see who can finish brushing their teeth first and try and make it into a game, my nephew quite enjoys it and also gets his teeth cleaned at the same time

[zgma]

Thanks for all the tips, folks, but I'm afraid I'm still discouraged. We've tried most of these options. He has his own named brushes that he's very fond of (Elmo and Bunny - he says goodnight to them every night). I've tried tickling, making him laugh, telling him I have to get at the cavity bugs, singing, making him roar like a tiger, having him brush my teeth, rewarding him for the times he lets me brush... I guess what I need now is more tips on how to get around the fact that this is already a power struggle. At this point, when he sees me coming towards him with a toothbrush, he clamps his mouth shut and hides behind a towel. Thanks!

[Lindy Loo]

Oh.... the joys of a toddler asserting himself !! :~( If you've tried all the suggestions no wonder you're frustrated! Zgma, it sounds like it's a touch of the 'Terrible Two's'! And I don't think it is a power struggle. All toddlers, as they grow up, start getting 'independant' and want to do things for themselves, even if the end result isn't quite what we parents would prefer!! Sometimes it's best to back off and let them get on with it, unless of course what they are doing is dangerous. Often the best way to deal with these 'tantrums' is just to ignore them, as the more you try to control the situation the worse it gets and you get wound up. By ignoring them, the child gradually learns that it gets them nowhere and gives up. These are just phases as he tries to assert his independance, and he will grow out of them. The less 'fuss' you make the less he will. Give it a try and see what happens. My sister had loads of problems with her daughter, laying on the floor of the supermarket screaming and kicking, not eating, refusing to wear anything except pink trousers and t shirts etc. All my sister did was say 'fine', and carry on with what she was doing. One day my sister even left her daughter (warning her 1st) on the supermarket floor and walked down the aisle....result ....instant silence and a docile daughter!!! Now she is 9 and well behaved...mostly!!

[zgma]

Thanks Lindy Loo, that's good advice. I'm not usually too bothered by the tantrums (and actually, he's usually very reasonable! We can often talk to him about why we want him to do or not do something). But this is worrying me, because I'm afraid he's going to have a mouth full of cavities. How can I ignore the tantrum when I do have to get his teeth clean???

[morg_monster]

You should really ask your dentist about this before you get totally worked up about it, you may find it isn't as big of a problem as you think. If he grows out of it with the terrible twos and then starts brushing properly, then i would have thought it unlikely any permanent damage will have been done to his milk teeth. (assuming he isn't feasting on coke and lollies every day).

[zgma]

Thanks morg_monster, that makes me feel better. No coke and lollies, but a fair amount of soy milk, which has some sugar in it. I'm going to the dentist next week anyway; I'll check with him about it. Thanks to everyone for your answers.

[Hellion]

My son is now six but I had the same problem. I realised that the power struggle was him trying to gain a bit of contol and me not allowing him so gave him choices. Took him to shop let him choose a new toothbrush (electric racing car) and toothpaste (strawberry flavour) Then a sticker everytime he brushed his teeth. I've discovred most children will do almost anything for a sticker (bizarre but true) and now I always keep stickers in my handbag!

[zgma]

Huh, I haven't tried the sticker yet, but it makes sense - I will try that! Thanks Hellion!

[daddyg]

We let our daughter brush them herself in the morning and then we brush them at night. We also got some mouthwash stuff that was suitable for nippers. It was just out of Boots or something and the fact she got to spit it out seemed to chirp her up.

[Kit]

Littl'un went on toothbrush strike until I realised that she'd gone off minty toothpaste. She now has the bubblegum flavoured stuff and I've had no more trouble.

[Archgeorge]

I have the same problem with my son and also have trouble washing his hair! The way we do it now is that he starts and we "check" afterwards, with or without the electric toothbrush (he often wants to use our brushes). If he won't comply, we revert to the old fashioned method of removing a treat - in our case, no dummy at bedtime or the threat of no sweets. 9 times out of 10 he then agrees, though it may be 30 mins or so later. Though you have probably tried this, always nice to know that others are putting up with screaming at 7pm!! Now what about washing that hair..........

[zgma]

Archgeorge, we used to have the hair washing issue too. Then I started making unicorn horns, bunny ears, etc. out of his soapy hair. He'll put up with the shampoo to get his unicorn horn! I have a dentist appointment today, and he's coming with me. Hopefully that will get him interested in toothbrushing.

[luc]

my little girl would not let me brush her teeth either, after trying stickers and non food treats etc she still did not let me. one morning i was brushing mine while see watched and she asked how many teeth i had, told her most grown ups have atleast 28. then she let me count hers while brushing them! we then made up silly names for each tooth as it was brushed. now she is 4 and happy to brush, but on bad days we have something to have fun with!

[Jesse's Mom]

My son is 2 also. I brush his teeth first than I let him do it. He knows that when I get done he gets to do it.

[Lindy Loo]

Hi Zgma, just a quick one....How did it go at the dentist and were they able to reasure you on the toothbrushing problem?