My 4 Year Old Hates Toothpaste!

I am having the same problem. The only toothpaste he will tolerate is the baby kind--which has no fluoride. I need some help as well. Mine is 4.5 as well..

You could try what they used before they had toothpaste. Take a wet tooth brush and tap it once into a small amount of baking soda. You just want enough to bearly cover the end of the bristles. It is not at all sweet, sort of saltly. It would at least be very different tasting.

i think as long as you give him fluoride water, you probably dont have to worry too much about paste as long as he is still brushing regardless. also you could try baking soda as a toothpaste alternative, he may not like the taste of that either. how would he feel about using mint paste? my six yr old recently switched to grownup paste, he loves the cinnamon flavor. they do come in so many flavors nowadays, he might like those better!

He doesn't NEED toothpaste. Just use water - that's what they used to do before toothpaste was invented. The important thing is brushing.

Don't use toothpaste! If he doesn't like it, why bother for now? You don't need it to brush your teeth---it has fluoride in it and freshens breath, but it's not necessary. If he's reliable at not swallowing, perhaps you can use a flouride rinse instead. If he isn't reliable, talk to your dentist about whether you need to add fluoride into his diet in another form.

Just skip the toothpaste for a while. The most important thing is that he is brushing. There may be something in toothpaste that disagrees with him, or he may just be asserting himself. Either way, time brushing without toothpaste seems to be in order.
Also, at 4 1/2 he should be doing most of the brushing, with you giving those teeth a once over when he's done. Dont let oral hygene become a battleground or power stuggle. It's too important for his future health.

I was actually going to ask the same question! My boy hates the taste of every toothpaste and I've tried different toothbrushes, tried letting him brush my teeth, brushing teeth together,singing silly songs,bribery, but he hates the taste so he's just been brushing his teeth with water which he has no problems doing so I figured brushing without toothpaste is better than no brushing at all! If only they made toothpaste that had absolutely no taste, like water!

Hello A.,

Well my son is only 2 1/2, but his dentist says we don't really need the toothpaste. Maybe because of his age, and the fact that he still doesn't know how to spit the toothpaste out.

But, she saids that brushing with just water will remove the plaque.

So, I could keep with your son's dentist. Hope this helps.

Good Luck,
M.