My Two and a Half Year Old Hates Brushing His Teeth!

It's a game he wants to play. Provide a rinse...listerine or other non-sugary brand, so he can have a "reward" after brushing...and let him get good at it. No worries, mom, he can get cavities even if he flosses and brushes twelve times a day.
Blessings, S.

What I did with my now 3 year old is I let her brush by herself for a count of 30 and then it's my turn. You really need to do it so his teeth get cleaned properly. Two year olds can absolutely get cavities. Our pediatric dentist recommends that parents brush their kids' teeth until they are 8 or 9! I know it becomes a battle but hopefully if you are persistent he will get the message.

VERY typical! And it's not about brushing his teeth. That's just the fight he chose to pick! He's testing the waters to see if he can be in charge. Brace yourself, it will be like this off and on from now on. That may sound negative to you but as a mother of 4 boys I don't mean it that way.:>)
Just be in charge! Keep in mind that chances are one he will be bigger than you and must learn to respect your authority while he's little!
I agree w/ letting him have a time to "brush" and then it's your turn. But I would NOT give in and not brush them myself after. Yes, they can get cavities at his age but mainly you will be losing that fight and it will just encourage more defiance in other areas. God bless and have fun raising your little blessing!

My two and three year old used to give me a hard time about that. First, I quit telling them I was trying to help them. I have very independent children who do not like to have help with anything. Second, I tell them it's my turn first. And after my turn, then it's their turn. That way I can squeeze in a lesson on taking turns too. I also let them re-apply more toothpaste to the toothbrush after I brush so that they feel like they are doing it all by themselves when it's their turn.

Yes! 2yos can get cavities & have to have them filled before they even lose those baby teeth (a cavity left can create greater problems for the new tooth & the gums!). My boys fought the toothbrushing by mom or dad too, but we started laying them across our laps & cradling them in one arm while brushing with the other - it was relaxing & comforting & they really liked it then. BTW, you should be brushing his teeth until he's about 7 - that's when they really begin to understand how to do it properly & why it must be done (check with your dentist, he'll tell you that too). Good luck -

A friend babysat my daughter and she liked his toothbrushing style. After the child brushes some, the parent finishes while counting to 10. Is your kid into counting? Anyway, then she would let me do it the way Peter did it and I think it helped that the idea was initiated by somebody other than me. As for cavities, I do hear of kids getting decay that young. Diet helps. Also, we only brushed teeth at night because we are not so organized about teeth in the morning. She is 4 now and fine so far, but we do eat differently than most Americans.

I have to tell my little girl that I need to check to make sure all of the buggies are off of her teeth and that I need to tickle them. I tell her that she can start but I have to make sure that they are all gone. Good luck. :0)
C.

Y.,

i have the same issue with my daughter. But she will let Daddy brush her teeth, not me. We haven't been able to get her in with the dentist yet. She also drinks chocolate milk as she is going to sleep. Can't break her of that either, without a major battle.

so I am convinced that her teeth are going to fall out. Which they will some day. hers just may be sooner rather than later.

so I have the same issue, just no good advice.

Hi Y.,
I let mine brush at that age
(with "their" special toothbrush)
then I followed up with a Mommy Round of the same.

For a while we used the chewable tabs which "show"
what's been left on the teeth,
and the kids could focus on the better job
(and gripe less when I did it for them).

I dont know if those chewable tabs are still available,
or if they're recommended for use anymore.
Ask your dentist!

The only other idea I can add is that when my son would give me a hard time about teeth brushing, I would say, well then, no snacks if we don't brush your teeth. Then I would list the things he liked specifically. One time it was a real battle so the next day when it was snack time I told him no, you don't let mom brush your teeth. He got the message REAL quick. Sometimes I have to remind him of this rule when we begin teeth brushing but he always ends up letting me brush because he doesn't like giving up snacks, that even included juice.
I do agree with taking charge as a parent, that's our job in some cases. At this age, he is starting to test you and want some independence. See if there are things you can do - let him pick out a new brush, ask what flavor paste he would like, does he want to take his turn first or second, how about he help put the paste on the brush, or fill the cup for rinsing. You are in charge, but letting him have a little bit of the decision making might make him feel more independent and less of a battle for you. You have a LOT of years of brushing so try not to battle now, but don't skip. Cavities can be painful.

Kids can get cavities regardless of proper teeth brushing - it has a lot to do with diet and mineral balance. Toothpaste can actually aggravate dental issues so I switched to using tooth soap with pure organic essential oils. http://www.automateyourwebsite.com/app/?af=694666

Let your son brush his own teeth and as long as he gargles/rinses using a pure natural tooth soap it's fine. If he used regular toothpaste then you'd want to be sure he doesn't swallow since fluoride is toxic in the amount added to toothpastes.

Good Morning Y. -

I have 3 children so I have been through this too. My son had the Triple Terrible Threes!! He is 9 now and still has to repeat cleaning his teeth at least 4 days out of the week. I still do daily "inspections" to check all of their teeth - yes even the 12 year old (who actually is more particular with her teeth than I am)!

You have received some fantastic advice already all I want to say is stay strong, be in charge, this is not an area that he can win in.

I am very proud to say that my children are 9, just 11 and 12+ and have no fillings or cavities!! So all that persistance paid off when they were 1,2,3,4,5. It is part of their routine - twice a day. Also they are not allowed to eat or drink anything after cleaning their teeth at night.

We tried the timed toothbrushes, the musical ones, the diclosing mouth wash - makes plaque turn blue - all kinds of toothpaste, but kids will find a way to make a game out of all of it in the end. Try singing him a song that last for 2 minutes instead and save your money honey.

Good luck
M. F

most definitely they can get cavities. my niece went to the dentist when she was 5 and she already had quite a few cavities. my son and daughter both HATED their teeth brushed. and i did the whole "let them do it by themselves" but i didn't feel they did it good enough. i'm probably a little harsh, but what i did was lay them down between my legs and lay their heads on my thigh, and then wrap my legs around their lower bodies so they could really move (like how they tell you to put in eye drops for kids) and then i brushed their teeth. (and if they cried it actually made it easier than them keeping their mouths closed) but i got it done quickly, and now they don't mind getting their teeth brushed at all and actually prefer me to do it for them now.

get him an electronic toothbrush that sings songs. it will brush them a lot better than he could and the song will make it fun.

Y.,

I know this sounds crazy but since my 2 (almost 3yr old) loves computers and absolutely hates to brush his teeth . I pulled up images in Google to show him pictures of what mouth germs look like and believe me he was interested in seeing them. Even one picture, which was to the extreme, where there were holes in someone's teeth. And now every night he says Mommy, let’s go get those germs out of my mouth. It was amazing! I don’t use any toothpaste for him but noticed someone else in your reply uses toothsoap, I also use toothsoap for myself from a brand called Rose of Sharon, tooth chips. Check it out if you’d like for your family: http://www.roseofsharonacres.com/tooth_chips___soap_for_t...

Yep, they can get cavities on thier teeth.
You're doing the right thing. You could try at least wiping with a clean wash cloth really well at bath time, (unless he bites), but brushing is the way to go. That's one battle you'll have to brace yourself for each day.
(You should even start flossing some, but I wouldn't stress about that at all:)