Tips for brushing a toddlers teeth?

My daughter is 16 months old and she refuses to let me help her brush her teeth. She loves to hold her toothbrush and brush them herself but when I try to help her she clamps her mouth shut. She doesn't do a very good job and I'm not sure what I can do to get her teeth clean. I read somewhere to use wet steralized gauze pads (in addition to her brushing) to wipe off the plaque/tartor from her teeth. It won't for one or two times, but then she bit my finger really hard. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Tips for brushing a toddlers teeth?
At least she attempts to clean her own so things are going in the right direction. Clean your teeth at the same time as her showing her the different movements and areas to brush so she can copy you. These are only milk teeth and onluy have to last a few years so a few month of poor brushinf will not matter too much.


More important is diet - not too much juice or squash - sweets ans cakes in moderation, fizzy drinks an occadional treat - as these eat away at the enamel. Unflavoured Milk and water are harmless to teeth.


She should also visit the dentist with you so she can get used to having her teeth checked at an early age.
Reply:You just have to do it. My 18 month odl didnt want us to brush his either. But the deal is, WE brush them first and THEn he brushes.
Reply:Try those spin brushes, they pretty much do the work for you. Then, you can help her move the toothbrush around without sticking your fingers in her mouth. Be sure that you are using toothpaste that has no floride in it since she is too young to understand the concept of spitting it out.
Reply:16 month love to brush her teeth. Every time any one in the house brushes she must. I like the deal First I brush then you. But another thing is you brush mommys teeth and I'll brush yours. She may like that game. Also try to get her to moch your movements with the tooth brush. Good practice and mine loves that game. Also maybe brush some one elses teeth and praise them then try your daughters and giver her as much or more. Good luck
Reply:I asked my doctor when my son was 2 if I should be brushing his teeth, and he said that there was no need. Children at that age can't spit either, so anything that was "brushed" would end up getting swallowed.





Unless you are feeding her a ton of sugar, in my opinion, she doesn't need to brush her teeth at that age, and she certainly shouldn't be using toothpaste.





If you think about it, humans weren't created to have to brush their teeth, so if you don't feed your child junk and keep the food you are giving her natural, you wont have to worry about brushing her teeth for a while.
Reply:I give our 14mo old the toothbrush and tell him it's time to brush his teeth - in the meantime I fill up a little cup with a few sips of water and then take over. I brush his teeth while "singing" to him about brushing his teeth. He does have a short attention span since he'd rather play with all the things on the bathroom counter instead, so we brush thoroughly but quickly. If he clamps or bites the brush, I try to make him laugh by calling him my little monster so that he opens his mouth and try again! When I'm done, he gets to drink from the "big boy cup" which is kind of his reward, so to speak.





With anything else at this age, repetition and consistency are key. Our next step may be to try a kiddie toothpaste, too. Good luck :)
Reply:just gently squeeze her cheeks together to make fish lips %26amp; force it in there, it never hurt my sons %26amp; also tell her that she can brush when your finished.Also do this at her level. After I had finished I gave my boys there brush so they can have a go %26amp; at first they tried to brush %26amp; ended up chewing on it %26amp; now after watching me brush my teeth they are getting much better %26amp; I really dont need to do much now.
Reply:let her chew on the toothbrush for fun. i let my son think it is one of his toys and not a chore,. he just chews on it all day and cleans his teeth. the more you force it on her, the worse it might get.
Reply:My daugher is 18 months and we're going through the same thing. What works for us is I sing the ABC's and during the song I have to brush her teeth, but after I'm done singing it then she can brush her teeth. Not only does it work but she's picking up her ABC's :)
Reply:Well even if her teeth don't get that clean, remember she'll have another pair coming when she's older. But it's good to start practicing dental hygiene at an early age
Reply:my daughter is now 2 and used to let me brush her teeth then went through a phase where she wouldnt let me near her mouth with a brush - she had to do it herself! now when we get up in the morning i put toothpaste on her brush and give it to her and she trys to brush em and then i will give em the once over. if you sit down in front of her then she should try and copy you and learn fairly quickly how to brush a bit better. worked for mine. all the best!
Reply:my 22mths used to be like that too. He is excited about it and wants to explore and so i let him do it himself. Guess he got tired of it already and he allows me brush it now. And i agrees with the 2nd answer, get those battery operated spin brush. It will make things easy.
Reply:Oh Man do i know what you mean~


I have a 22month old and Every day its a battle, I usually brush teeth after her bath while she's wrapped in a towel, (that way her arms are wrapped in the towel and she can grab the tooth brush)


I lay her across my lap and wait for her to open her mouth, she will refuse at first but after a few moments she'll start crying and i just have to brush as fast as i can, I really hate to do it though, She screams bloody murder the whole time and its not fun, but you must keep those little teeth healthy~
Reply:Let her do it herself at first and then just say "let mummy finish off please" then she has done it herself but you are making sure that it is done properly. She just wants to be a big girl and do it herself. Either that or you wil have to cheat and wait until she is asleep and give them a quick scrub before she wakes up!!! o/j Hope this helps!



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