Brushing Teeth/two Year Old

We have a sticker chart with 3 things to do on it each week. . . pick up toys, brush teeth, wash hands right after meals etc. My 2.5yr old understands exactly what they mean. He really improved after a week of getting stickers for brushing his teeth nicely. (letting us do it mostly) My dentist said if you need to, restrain them somehow and they'll cry/yell, then you get the open mouth you need and go for it. We had to do that a few times a while ago too. Not fun but it works. . . better than cavities. Good luck!

My son just went through this about a month ago...I just told him the day would not start until we were ready for it...no cartoons, no going out, no games, no coloring...until you are done...that did it...the first day we sat in the darn bathroom for almost 45 minutes but he got the point...it only took three or four days (the next two or three days were only about 10 minutes of waiting it out) before he stopped arguing...now we get an occasional protest, but I just tell him we can't go out or play until teeth are brushed...good luck...:)

Try getting her an electric toothbrush with her favorite character on it. For my 3-yr-old son it was Spongebob, and for my 5-year-old daughter it was Dora. I found them at Aldi awhile ago (they were a limited item, no longer there now) for under $10 each. You could surely find one on Ebay or elsewhere on the internet if not at any large retail store. My kids actually beg to brush their teeth now and never forget, whereas they used to dislike brushing with their non-electric toothbrushes even though those were "character" toothbrushes as well.

Take her to the dentist and have them explain the importance of doing it.

Talk to her about "sugar bugs" on her teeth that will make "owies".

Let her brush first... then you.

Have her pick out her own toothbrush and paste at the store.

If she still resists... definitely CUT WAY BACK on juice and sticky snacks, otherwise you will probably have an issue with her teeth. My son just had 4 cavities filled due to no flossing and TOO MUCH apple juice and fruit snacks.

The dentist said that apple juice should ONLY be consumed with food and that fruit snacks are CANDY and should be treated as such.

Good Luck - hope this helps.

Here's what works for us when my daughter (same age) doesn't want to do something.
Our issue is nap time.
I taped a piece of construction paper to her bedroom door. Above that on another piece of paper I wrote the bed time rules:
Lay down
Close your eyes
Go to sleep

If she naps that day she gets a sticker on her paper and we let her watch a short video.
No nap-- no sticker no video. I just say, that's ok, I'm sure you'll nap tomorrow and then you can get your sticker and video.
The stickers don't mean anything, she just loves them.
Kids are so motivated by rewards.

You could do the same thing with morning and evening rules.
Eat breakfast
Wash your hands
Brush your teeth.
Something like that.

She also has a Thomas the Train toothbrush that sings to her.
Make sure you are using non fluoride toothpaste until 31/2 or so until they can spit.
My dentist recommended Tom's toothpaste in strawberry flavor. It's the same flavor for fluoride and non fluoride, so when you make the switch to fluoride she'll never know.
I would also suggest taking her to a pediatric dentist if you haven't already.
They are so good with kids that age.
Good luck!

Okay, here's what worked for us. It sounds goofy but worked each time. My kids are 8 & 11 now and they still talk about doing this. We made it a game and pretended that they had animals (my son actually preferred bugs) on their teeth and we had to "get" them. We had to brush them away or they would end up with a zoo inside their mouth! It got to a point where we would say instead of "Let's brush your teeth", it was "Let's go catch the animals". We made it fun by being involved and saying stuff like "Uh, oh, I see a giraffe on your front tooth, hurry get it!" and "Wow, you've got a zoo in there!". It worked because it wasn't a power struggle, it was a game. Good luck and have fun!

Here is some info -- hopefully it is helpful:

http://www.yourfamily.org.uk/parenting_zone/family_matter...

"Fruit astringent substances help in cleaning teeth." http://www.wapa-association.org/newsdetail.asp?id=16

"Eating a bit of cheddar cheese or any type of cheese at the end of a meal helps protect the teeth. It stimulates the production of cleansing saliva inside the mouth, and the calcium in cheese also hardens tooth enamel.

Crisp apples, celery and carrots are nature's little toothbrush alternatives. They not only help to get rid of food particles inside your mouth, they also use their rough, fibrous texture to scrub away on the teeth as you chew to brighten your smile."
http://www.ehow.com/how_###-###-####_avoid-tooth-decay.html

Brush them for her..........she's too young to do the job right anyway. You are letting this be an option and it isn't

Try having her pick her own toothbrush out, but make sure you show her which ones to choose from, since they are categorized by size for age. (We actually went one step up to have more to choose from.) Also, does she have any little friends that she loves playing with and adores? We would say "Chloe brushes her teeth every night too. You can show her how clean your teeth are next time we see her." It worked well. Hope this helps and good luck!!

Hi
Have u tried fun toothbrushes like the ones that spin or light up. Take her to the store and have her pick out her own may be.
I used to watch a kid who didn't like brushing and I used to tell her the story about how the germs were having a big old party in her mouth and they were munching on her teeth for snacks. This would make holes in her teeeth and they might start to hurt.
hope any of this helps:-)

mom of 2, D.

Here is what works for me and my kids are 7 and 9. We have the tooth brushes that spin and play music. They where just at the dentist last week and he said the spinning toothbrushes are great for kids because the clean better then the regular ones. You might have to hold the buttom for her(unless you can find the ones that you dont have to hold the button). We found ours at Target, but I think I saw them now at Walmart. Good Luck. And let her pick out her favorit song..

Have you tried to just let her chew on the toothbrush.

Every now and then mine would give me a hard time, but I told them no wasn't an option. I always tell them they can do it themselves or mommy/papi can do it. After one time being forced to brush teeth, they always decided it was better to do it themselves.

We had to resort to the electric toothbrush For some reason she liked the feel. It may not have been the best brush in the world, but she learned to enjoy it and we let her pick anything from princess toothbrushes to whatever character she could fiind that she liked.

Worth a shot!

Hi K.,
My daughter is also 2 1/2 and she will only brush her teeth with someone else. So, we see who can brush the longest and since it is a game she thinksit is fun.
Best Wishes!

Does she like princesses? We took a two-pronged approach to getting our little princess to brush: 1) we told her that Belle and Ariel and Cinderella all brush their teeth and that is why they have such beautiful, sparkly teeth; 2) we explained that people who don't brush their teeth have yucky, brown, rotten teeth. Then when she refused to have her teeth brushed, we would make her show us her teeth and we would say something like, "uh-oh, I think I see a brown spot." Worked every time and now she brushes her own teeth and loves to look at them sparkle like Cinderella.

For both our 3.5 y/o and our 18M I let them do it. We got our older son a "cool" toothbrush (Shrek) that he picked out when he was about 2. I go first and I sing the ABC's while I brush and then it's their turn and I sing the ABC's and they brush. Our 18M loves it so much he asks for it right after bed.

There was a time when I would have to brush mine with our older son and I would let him take a turn doing it for me.

Good luck.

By now she should be going to the dentist regularly, and they should explain to her how important it is to brush your teeth twice a day. Tell your dentist what is going on and I am sure the dentist will explain it all to her. Also, it is not an option for her, or at least it shouldn't be. At this age she is probably too young to do a good job herself everytime. I would tell her she can do it on her own, or you will do it for her. At night I would assist her either before or after unless you watch her and think she is getting all of her teeth including the back ones and her tongue.