Need Some Tips for Toddler Toothbrushing

My daughter uses a Firefly toothbrush that I found at Target for 99 cents. Her dentist also recommended it. You push down on the toothbrush and it lights up red for the amount of time they should brush.
Hope this helps and good luck!

I've been in the same off and on battle that you are in right now. Sometimes my son lets me brush his teeth, but other times he violently opposes it. One thing that has helped us (again, some of the time) is that toothbrush that plays music that can only be clearly heard while it is in the child's mouth, on a tooth. Ours plays a song from the Lion King, and I only take it out when he's REALLY being difficult.

I found this stuff at Walmart called "Inspector Hector's Plaque Detector." It's a BLUE mouthwash and they have to keep brushing until there is no blue left on their teeth. It was in the toothbrush/mouthwash section. It's a little messy, but it didn't stain my counter or sink. Thee kids just like the novelty of it. They love having a blue mouth. Good luck. I have an 18 month old and he hates to have his teeth brushed, so I know the feeling.

Try 'brushing out the animals' in their mouth. I think I got this tip from Mamasource. I was in the same boat ... as soon as the novelty of brushing wore off my son got bored. Now we say ... 'oh look ... I see a monkey in your mouth! We need to brush it out'. The animals change depending on the day or there are many animals at one time and we ask him which animals he sees. Just a little make-believe goes a long way.

There are some cute toothbrushing songs and videos you can play from the internet. Try youtube.com

We also give stickers to play with while brushing or afterwards.

Maybe having him make sounds while you help brush. I have my kids say aahhhh and open real big so I can brush the tops (chewing surface)and inside of their teeth. Then eeeee so I can brush the outsides. Then I have them say aaaa (short a sound) and stick out their toungue so we can brush that. They think that one is the best, so they can't wait until they can stick their toungue out. We also started a bedtime sticker chart, so if they brush real good, or brush then let me help finish they get a sticker.

It seems to be first an assertion of independence (that he can do it himself) and then a battle of will (that you're NOT going to take away his new-found independence). My little Evie will be 3 in December and I just let her brush her teeth herself. I went through the same battle and went to my dentist about it. His (secret) recommendation? Just let her do it herself - but make sure she does it. No, she doesn't get them as clean as I would, but they get brushed reasonably well. She has a clean dental record, despite her flawed brushing. I just remind her to "get the backs" while brushing with her - she mimicks me and still gets to brush her teeth herself. It's a decision of choosing your battles....

I agree with the moms who said to play songs. And so the novelty doesn't wear off too fast, only play these favorite songs while he brushes his teeth (and maybe one more song afterwards.) There are cute songs out there that stress healthy habits such as brushing teeth. One mom suggested YouTube and that's a great idea because your son can hear and see someone during the song.... hopefully another kid brushing his teeth. We got musical toothbrushes awhile back and they brush until the music stops. (Like a musical timer!) I bought ours at Meijer but I'm sure other stores sell them too. They sell them in smaller sizes too and toddler songs are on them.

I am also going through this struggle with my almost 18 month old. She loves to do it herself but does not want me to. I have decided it is just not worth a huge battle. If she lets me, great. If she decides to fight, then I let her chew on her brush as she tends to do. I had this same issue with my older kids and they have never had a cavity. One thing I do though is only give water about an hour after dinner. This way at least in theory, the food particles are "flushed" away.

The Sprout channel has a cute little bedtime routine song that plays about 7:45 p.m. about washing your face and brushing your teeth-- "Brush, brush,every tooth, no need to rush, brush them every night until they're bright. And then you spit, and that's it!" Singing the song while my daughter brushes has helped us.

Ideas...light up tooth brush; electric toothbrush; make it a game such as "get the tooth monster out of there" and explain that you have to chase the monster around the back teeth to make sure it isn't hiding; have your son lay on his back and make funny noises while you do a once-over; brush teeth in bed while he reads a book or plays with a toy. All of these have worked with my two but you have to switch it up once in a while. In a couple of years he'll be good on his own. Good luck!

Hi L.,

I think you should let the poor boy brush his own teeth. He is showing independence, and that's what you want. Both of my sons were brushing by themselves at that age. Both sons wanted different kinds of toothbrushes. My older son picked out the electric toothbrush, which he thought was fun. My youngest son liked the spiderman toothbrush. Make sure you buy the soft brissels too which is recommended by your dentist. You can also get a minute (Plastic hour glass) glass from the dentist, and the kids like watching the sand go down. When the sand runs out, my kids knew the teeth brushing was done. That way it doesn't seem like forever to them.

Yes, try the battery powdered toothbrush. Let him choose the one he wants. Another thing to try is having your husband do the brushing with him. Boys relate very well with their fathers with subjects like, pottie training, tooth brushing, and proper bathing of private areas. The fathers need to be helping when a son is involved.
Another thing you can do is let him brush your teeth. Make it a game. Get some of the bubble gum flavored tooth paste. I think it is made by Oral B. My son used this tooth paste til he was in Junior High. He liked the taste.

Our pediatric dentist gives the kids a small sand timer to use while they brush their teeth. They loved to use it especially when they were little. It helped to make toothbrushing exciting. Give it a try!

My daughter is the same age and I'm having the same issue. She used to love it so I want to read the responses you got.

I try and let my son brush his own teeth. What we also do in order for him to actually do it instead of just chewing on it is letting us hear the “good noise”. We put our ear up to his head to hear the sound of him brushing and he listen to us when we are doing it. I do mine a little and tell him to listen and then he copies what I do. Now the uppers, now the bottom ones, now the front ones, etc. We then rinse our mouths (he uses water) in either his Elmo or Sponge Bob cup. Then I pretend to do the sniff test - “Yes, no more stinky breath. Good job.” Yes, it is challenging some days but we try to do it twice a day. I also use his little brother saying that if he won’t then it’s Andrew turn (even though Andrew is almost 9 months and still has no teeth.) He always states “No, Peter’s turn.” Sometimes he will allow us do a final brush (nighttime routine) but at least he is trying. I make a game out of the whole spitting of toothpaste. I quickly brush a little then tell him it’s time to spit. Do a little more and spit. It’s a longer process but it does work and it also helps him learn not to swallow the paste.

Lastly, I have two different pastes (Elmo and Thomas) and three different brushes (a spinner - battery operated one, a green brush and a yellow brush). He chooses which one. That also helps with him wanting to brush his teeth - letting him make the choices/decisions for himself. He sees it as me not telling him to do it but him wanting to do it because of those decisions. And yes, sometimes he choices to use more than one brush and I tell him that’s ok as long as I hear the good noise.

Good luck.