Toddlers Brushing Their Teeth

Hi!
Kinda normal...! I have been a dental assistant for about 10 years and have seen and heard of this ALOT. Try getting a little timer (hour glass type you find in games) and set an incentive that if she can go the whole time it takes for the sand to come down, she can have...(you set the "incentive" but try to stay away from candy) time spent with you or a fun little toy works best. Toddlers love mommy time, and when it is earned it is soooo special!!
She also needs to see you brush. Be the example by getting into a routine every nite (both of you) and after a week she will get it. I still get into jammies with my girls at the same time, and we brush teeth. All of us! And they are now 5 and 12 and do a great job on thier own, but it has become a habit we all do. It will come. Be patient. As far as the yellow spots go, try not to let that go too long. Could be decay. If you need to set up an appointment for Dentist so she can watch, do it. Then ask your Dentist at which age he sees kids. Some like to wait til thier four. But if there is suspect of decay, you shouldn't wait. But you also need to be patient (yet firm!) with her if she freaks...some kids do! And some do really well. Mommy has alot to do with this reaction, remember! Monkey see, monkey do.
GOOD LUCK!!! :)
LT

2 moms found this helpful

My youngest is almost nine and just had three teeth pulled. One of them was a permanant tooth. The dentist said, I should be the one who brushes his teeth. I think two is too young to be doing it on her own. Good luck!!!

I saw someone post something similar but what I do with my 2 year old is We sing a song of some kind (I make up words to tunes we know) but I tell her Mommy's turn!! and I sing the song (ie If you're happy and you know it tune, "we are going to brush our teeth it's mommy's turn") after a verse I say "Your turn!" and sing it again with her name instead and we do that a couple of times. Often she wants to keep going--hope it helps.

Hey Dana,
One thing I do with my 2.5 year old is sit her up on the bathroom sink and tell her I'll start and then she can finish. So I'll quickly get all the important spots on her teeth- we do "AHHH, EEEE" to get her to open her mouth wide and then show me the fronts of her teeth. Then I tell her to stick her tongue out so I can brush that too. After she sticks her tongue out she knows it's now her turn to finish. Also, when I brush my teeth sometimes she starts and I finish. We try to make it a game. We also use the mechanical brushes and my dentist told me that they get the teeth cleaner than I think. If she puts up a fuss about me helping her do it, I tell her she can do it without the toothpaste. When she's ready to do it right, I'll put the paste on and start for her. Anyway, all that to say, it took a while but once we got a routine down, she doesn't fuss hardly at all. Good luck! : )

We are in the same boat. We just help her do the best we all can do concerning brushing her teeth. The best is when one of us brushes our teeth at the same time that she is brushing or that someone is helping her brush so she can see what we are trying to accomplish. Just keep trying and eventually she will be able to brush her teeth properly and everything will be fine. My two older children were the same way (10 and 7). They know how to brush, when to brush, how to floss, etc....everything turned out fine and I know it will with my youngest, too!

You could try using a colorful sand timer. They have two minute timers available. You could try letting her brush for half the timer and you the other half. Tell her that you just want to see how good of a job she did with praise.

Hi, Dana,

I have a 2 1/2 year old daughter who LOVES to brush. Our rule is that Mom or Dad has to do it for her first and then we let her go to town. She used to do that tight lipped, clenched teeth thing, too. I finally came up with a way to get her to open up...I told her the toothbrush wanted to "tickle" her teeth. She loves to be tickled herself, so this was something she could totally relate to. Now, when I or my husband brushes her teeth, we make giggling noises pretending that her teeth are getting "tickled" and she loves letting us brush now.

Hope this trick will work for you! Also, if you haven't already, you may want to take her to a dentist to see if they can do a cleaning. It's not too soon.

What are her favorite cartoon characters? Maybe you should get a Dora themed toothbrush or something. They have these really cool mechanical ones that have a song that plays for two minutes, so you brush while listening to that. You could make a little reward chart like someone I know does for her four-year-old son. It's little chores and toiletries and stuff he can do, and he gets to put a star sticker by one of them each time he does them. Maybe you could do that for her!

Hope this helps!

My son is turning 3 soon and we had the same problem. We just had to get creative. I tell him, let's brush our teeth first, and then... (he can do one of his favorite activities). Then, my husband or I brush them and then we give the toothbrush to him to try. He actually likes doing it himself. But, like you said, he doesn't do it very good as you said with your daughter. You can try letting her look into the mirror too. Tommy got a kick out of that. It's just something new. Once it becomes a part of the routine, they know they have to do it and they will be a little more cooperative.

Good luck. :-)
-S.

First, don't make it such a battle that she hates the process entirely--this will haunt you later. Secondly, remember that all kids do eventually learn to do it. The best thing to do is have patience. My guess is that she knows how badly you want her to do it, and therefore she is making it a power struggle.

We are always telling our kids "you didn't do a good job let me do it for you". Tell her "You know--I think you can do a pretty good job of this, so why doesn't mommy go first for a bit, then I will let you use the fun toothbrush to get all the spots mommy misses." Get yourself a regular toddler toothbrush and you use that first-concentrate on the back where she will miss. Then after that, as her reward, give her the mechanical one and let her have at it all she wants. If she sits there for 10 minutes with the thing in her mouth let her. In 10 minutes she will brush more then you think she is. You have already brushed the teeth she is likely to miss and she will learn to have fun doing it.

I have a very independent little 4 year old who now has pretty good brushing habits. It took some work to get this far but the neatest trick I ever learned was, "You can do it the easy way or the hard way. What would you like?" (we use this for all sorts of things) Because at least twice a week I would brush her teeth for her. She also clamped her jaw shut. When she resisted I asked her easy or hard way? The easy way: let mommy brush her teeth then she gets to do it by herself, Hard way: Mommy sits on the floor and puts child's head between thighs and traps arms under thighs (sometimes you have to cross your legs over theirs to keep feet out of the way) and Mom brushes her teeth that way. She stays trapped till she opens her mouth and the brushing is done. Needless to say a child doesn't typically like being trapped, and often chooses the easy way. Though honestly sometimes the hard way is easier for mom. ;)

My silly little girl now prefers when I brush her teeth to be in the floor position rather than standing. Go figure. Just make sure you use a children's toothpaste, like the harmless clear stuff for these early years till they learn to rinse and spit and not swallow. You are the mom and have to make sure you don't have to pay outrageous dental bills...

Since your daughter likes the mechanical toothbrushes, try buying her the kind that are musical (Walmart, Target, lots of places). When turned on, they play a song and the kids are supposed to keep brushing until the song stops playing. It's worth a try!

Could be fun for the whole family - everyone could brush to the music!

My son (2 yrs) knows he gets a chance to brush his teeth and then it is mommy's turn (or daddy's). Sometimes he doesn't want to do it...then it is just mommy's turn. Sometimes he doesn't like it and squirms or fusses or even cries....but we do it every night so it is just part of his routine. Eventually they get used to it and the fussiness goes away (for the most part). We also tell him we have to brush our teeth to keep them strong and clean. He has cute little toothbrushes with different characters or animals on them and flavored toothpaste...these help a little.

Hi Dana,

I have had good luck when I brush my teeth as they brush theirs and then after we are "finished" We would "check" each others teeth. My kids would always brush longer that way and then it would give me a chance to get what they missed! :-)

Good Luck!

I tell my kids that there are "sugar monsters" that eat their teeth. We brush them off with the tooth-brush...victory! I sing a little song with them, about brushing top teeth, then bottom teeth, then side teeth (with an "oops!" on each side to brush the cheek), and last the tongue, then "mommy's turn is done" and I give them a turn. They have to let me brush through the song, or they don't get a turn. I try to push just enough, but not so much that I am invading their body. Mouths are private and I push, but I won't force, if that makes sense. If they won't let me brush, I just put the toothbrush away.

With the older kids, I let them brush first, then do a "plaque check". We talk about how plaque is like a slimy house that the sugar monsters live in, and we have to brush it away. So I look for plaque and brush it off if I see it. I let them see if I have any on my teeth, too!

Last note-- don't let her walk around with a toothbrush, and be sure that she is in a safe and stable place! My cousin nearly lost his 2 year old when she fell off the sink and the toothbrush penetrated the back of her throat, pushing on but not breaking her carotid artery. She was hospitalized for anitbiotics and observation, but survived fine...whew!

It sounds like she already has good habits as far as brushinng at all is concerned...as time goes on, and she realizes how good it feels to have clean teeth, she will do it all on her own..also, does she like being a "grown-up"? Or even a Big girl? Feel free to contact me if you need any further explaning done.

There are tooth brushes that play music while they brush. They can only hear the music during the brushing. And it plays for 2 minutes. My 5 yr. old loves hers. That was the only way she brushed the whole 2 minutes. I found the tooth brushes a last year. It might excite her enough to have her teeth brushed. The brushes can be found at most stores.

What we did to get our son to like brushing his teeth is use the mechanical one and sing a song while we are doing it. We tell him he has to brush until the song is over. That way, we know he is brushing long enough. Good Luck!

What flavor toothpaste are you using?
When my grandson was that age he loved to brush with bubblegum toothpaste.

I hear the alphabet repeated twice can do the trick. Also, a rhyme (Have you ever seen a lassie) about top this side top that side bottom this side bottom that side front...front... might help.

HI Dana,

My name is K. I have a 2 1/2 year old and a 9 month old.
I had the same problem with my oldest daughter. I finally figured out it might take a long time but I brush and then she brushes I brush then she brushes. One thing I found that really helps is instead of holding her down and forcing her. I ask her to open like this and I do it with my mouth. I tell her okay we are going to brush the top ones. Open like this okay now the bottom ones open like this. I just pull my upper lip up like smiling for top and stick my jaw out so my bottom teeth come out and up. Hope this makes sense. I just really talk to her the whole way through it. I have noticed a huge difference. Hope it helps.

I brush my 2 - now 3 year old's teeth. It was a fight at first but I just kept at it until it happened. I always smiled and said "good job!" while I was prying his mouth open and working the toothbrush in, even though he was fussing, and soon he learned not to fuss. The front teeth were the hardest, so I'd ask him to "say cheese!" like getting a picture taken, and at that opportune moment I would reach in with the toothbrush and get those front teeth done. Sometimes we had a little fight because he wants to control the toothbrush, but I am in charge and he is my son, so eventually I won that one too. If you repeat this process every night she will learn to accept it as her routine.

My husband is a dentist & came up with a great plan for ours (right now they are 4yo twin boys & 2 1/2 yo daughter. We have that sand timer, darn, forget what you call it - very small, bright colored so that when you flip it over the sand travels down. Once it's done - they are done. (I think it's 1.5 minutes, or 2minutes. They still watch it like a hawk.

Kids this age love to have choices, and they love to feel like they have control, and they love silliness. You could offer to let her brush your teeth if she'll let you brush hers first. Tell her to choose one story for you to read to her while she brushes, and make sure she brushes through the whole story. Just try to make a routine that is fun, that takes several minutes, that will encourage her to brush for a long time and/or allow you to brush them for her.

I let my 2 year old enjoy brushing his teeth everytime I do but my child is the same as yours, he does not do a good job. I started helping him but he is way too independant he was fighting me and it almost ruined him liking to brush his teeth with me at all. Instead of making him afraid of a toothbrush I use a washrag and infant/toddler toothpaste to "brush his teeth" really thourough. I do this at a different time and in a different bathroom than when he is brushing his teeth so he knows they are two seperate daily activities.

Hello Dana, I struggled a little too with my 19 months old son, I gave him a little bit time to introduce the tooth brush, he liked my mechanical tooth brush at first and I let him use that but it can hurt his little mouth. Then I notice that if we all brush out teeth at the same time, since my little one like to mimic everything then he brushes his teeth. I know this sounds really strange actually he cries if we take his tooth brush away. So, try to do this together and see ways that you can make it fun. For us we count each other's teeth and he likes that. Just be consistent and do what you want your kids to do so that it make it fair. Let me know if this helps any!

My 3 yr old is in preschool and they are learning about germ busters. They learn about washing all the germs off their hands, turning the water off with a paper towel, and coughing into their arm rather than their hands, etc. So we make brushing his teeth a game to "get those germs". It is still a exercise in learning patience for us sometimes because he gets side tracked looking at himself in the mirror but I think the more fun we can make it instead of a battle the more likely he is to continue to brush.

Be careful with those spots as that can be an early sign of decay and decay can cause damage to the permenant teeth below the surface too.

As far as brushing it HAS to be something she just allows you to do, have her start and then you finish but she is not old enough to brush herself and do a good job. Just set a timer and tell her she can do it for 30 seconds then you are going to finish up so you can get the socks off her teeth (what my daughter called the yucky feeling on her teeth). Sing a song while she is brushing even tell her she can brush your teeth if you let her brush yours! Any trick to make it positive but she has to let you. I still trade off with my six year old as I know she isn't doing a great job that I check her brushing and help her out on occassion.

well getting any 2 year old to do something that they don't want to do is tricky. I am the mother of a two almost 3 yr old boy. I have been brushing his teeth since he got his first tooth and even before that and he tried to do the whole "I do it" with me too. The one thing that has been really successful for me is that he gets to brush his teeth after me. I have to brush first and then I let him do it for as long as he wants. Make it into a game. If she has knowledge of time let her know that you are only going to brush for ???? long and then it will be her turn. Stick with it and she will get the hang of it!

Make it a game. You can also get those sand timers, the ones that you turn over and sand pours into the other side. My kids dentist gave them each one at their first checkup. We put it on the counter and they watch it and don't stop brushing until all the sand gets to the other side. It is about 3 minutes which is a perfect amount of time. My dentist also told me that if your child will not use a regular tooth brush you just have to make sure that they hold the mechanical one in each spot and they cover all the surfaces of teeth.

Hi Dana,

I have a two year old daughter whom I've been fighting with on the toothbrushing thing since I started at 6 months! For a long time it was really bad and I had to force it. Now it is getting better. A little fun trick I do with her is tell her that I see a ladybug in there, or Elmo, or Little Bear or whatever. Then she will usually let me "get it out". I also tell her it's my turn first and then she can have a turn. She likes to play with the water, so I let her do that for a couple minutes and then we're done. Her teeth are definitely not as while as her other 2 siblings, but hopefully she will have good habits by the time her permanent teeth grow in.

Hope this helps!

L.

A 2 year old is not old enough to brush her teeth and do a good job. My dentist said kids need help until they are at least six.

Maybe you can let her use the mechanical brush after you brush with a regular toothbrush. Maybe you can offer an extra story or game if she is cooperative...

Of course it's always a good idea to explain why it't important for mommy or daddy to brush teeth. Here are a couple good pictures and articles regarding tooth decay:
http://www.ada.org/public/topics/decay_childhood.asp
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Dental/Story?id=3116010&...
http://images.google.com/images?sourceid=navclient&ie...

Toddlers are challenging when it comes to so many things and need our help and teaching. They wear a car seat every time whether they like it or not. They accept our help every night brushing their teeth whether they like it or not. I hope you get some good advice on how to get her to be more cooperative. I'm sure you will find a great solution, but if not, hang in there, this too shall pass. : )

Maybe you could take your daughter to a pediatric dentist so they could show her how to brush correctly and explain that sometimes it would be good for her to let you help.

Timers have worked well with my kids. When they brush it seems like a very long time to them even thought it's only about 5 seconds. The timer helps because they know exactly how long they have been brushing their teeth.

I would suggest playing the turns game. She gets to brush her teeth, then it's your turn. Maybe even let her brush yours. Make it a game. Once she gets better, let her brush at night while you do it in the morning.

They have the rubber combs you slip on your finger have you tried that? Also we taught our daughter that their were sugar monsters in her mouth and we had to get them out. That's what the dentist teaches her. Good luck!

Bravo for you! Braun has an electric tooth brush with 2 speeds and a TIMER! It's great for kids. I have my grandkids use it when they stay with me. I also use it every day. It's not that expensive and really gives a great cleaning. The replacement heads are OralB and have color rings so everyone gets their own color.

My daughter also wanted to brush her own teeth (she is 4 now). Here is what works for us:
She is allowed to brush her own teeth first and then Mom or Dad "spot check." We ofcourse tell her how great her teeth look and then as we brush we make it fun by saying different foods in her mouth (things she has recently eaten). I hope this helps you and your daughter!!
R.

Dana
My daughter had the same problem when she was young. I tried all kinds of things. Somethings you mlght try are to have a toothbrushing song you sing to celebrate. Brush, brush brush your teeth. Brush them right away.Brush them morning. Brush them at night. Don't let those sugar bugs stay.(Tune:Row row your boat) Brush them with her. Brush them to a timer. Talk about killing the sugar bugs that eat holes in your teeth(Once the sugars are in your mouth they turn into bacteria which makes holes in the teeth). We know they are cavities. But that's a way to explain it to young kids. I tried all of those ,then talked to my dentist. He told me she had to get her teeth brushed each day. I finally had to lie her down on the bathroom counter and brush her teeth for her. She didn't like this, but I had tried every thing else. It wasn't fun for me, but it needed to be done. Good luck P.

My kids have always loved brushing their teeth. I give them the flavored toothpaste and now my oldest is 11, my younger ones brush with her and then come to me or my husband for a "spot check" to make sure they got the back ones. I would suggest two things. First take her to a dentist. Sometimes having someone else tell her she needs to brush better helps, not really scare her into it, but explain why it is important. My preschooler came home with a toothbrush and toothpaste after a lesson on teeth, what ever he learned hit so home with him that he brushes after every meal not just in the morning or bedtime, and sometimes in between. My second suggestion is to tell them a story while they are brushing their teeth. My cousin does this and it works great for them. They tell their kids that they have to brush their teeth the whole time mom or dad tells them a story. The parents usually tell a scripture story, you can tell any story. They prolong the story until they feel the kids have brushed their entire mouth.

Otherwise it is time and consistency! Good luck

My kids were never given the choice on me brushing for them at night. They get to do morning, we do night. I would just make that "deal" with her. You can try getting a timer and tell her that she has to brush until that goes off, I'm pretty sure it is supposed to be for 2 minutes.

I had the same problem with my now 2 1/2 yr ols. She would fight me so bad. So I stopped fighting her and made a game out of it. We would have her brush her teeth first while we sang the ABC's, then I would tell her that I needed to check her teeth for "Sugar Bugs". She would open wide and let me inspect and even let me brush for a few seconds. Now she lets me brush her teeth and inspect any time. It took a few weeks to get to where we are now, but hang in there. It is really inportant that you brush for her till she is 6. (that advise coming from my dentist) Hope this works for you too!!!

Our dentist recommends that we continue to brush the kids' teeth until they are 8 years old. Kids just don't have the skills to do it properly. So, we have been brushing our boys' teeth since they came in (now 4 1/2 and 2 years). Some things that have helped us: we let the boys have a turn first, and then when they're finished, it is mommy or daddy's turn. Taking turns is a basic concept they'll need to learn anyway. We also are very positive and encouraging, talking about how nice and clean, pretty (whatever!) their teeth are. And, we have them say or sing "Ahhh" and "Eeee" which helps to distract them as well as expose their teeth for thorough brushing. Brush gently, don't make it a battle, be positive. Has she been to the dentist yet? You should take her and perhaps they would have more recommendations.

We took turns brushing teeth with our toddlers - in other words, they brushed our teeth for us, and we brushed their teeth for them. We made it into a big game, so they thought it was fun, and we got their teeth clean! Hope this helps!

If she likes the mechanical ones try the Tooth Tunes they play music in your mouth for a full two minutes. You brush during the music and when it stops you stop. They have all kinds of different songs. They have these at Walmart, Toy r Us, those type of stores.

Hi,
There is a new toothbrush out there called the Firefly (sold at Target). It has a blinky light that goes for a full minute. This helps the child know how long they need to brush. They also have musical electric toothbrushes with Hannah Montana....again, the child brushes through the song. (I don't believe that is a 3 minute song) That is also at target for about $7.00 (i think) The Firefly is only about $2-$3.

Good Luck

S.