Brushing Teeth - Justice, IL

What if you put a Dixie cup or some sort of "target" in the sink that he can only spit in when brushing? Maybe that would be fun to try...

Our dentist gave us one of those sand in a bottle timers. My son turns it when he begins brushing and continues to brush until times up. He was told this would keep the "sugar bugs " from getting in between his teeth. The novelty of this system kept him in the routine of brushing. I encourage you to talk to your dentist they are full of great (and inexpensive) ideas. Oh, remember to tell him how clean his teeth look and how nice his breath smells when you give him his kiss goodnight or goodbye.

I get the whole family in the bathroom when it's time to brush. I allow my daughter to brush after I brush for her and I started my 16 month old brushing. I would use negotiation if need be or show her pictures of bad teeth and the consequences of having no teeth.Jennifer

I am have been having the same problem with my 4.5 year old son. Brushing for school is usually not a problem. Its the bedtime that I dread. He has a musical toothbrush, which has helped (plays music for 2 minutes, thats when he knows its time to stop). I also have him rinse with an Anticavity Fluoride Rinse for Kids (Act makes one and walmart has a generic equivalent, I am sure most stores will too). Its bubble gum flavor. That makes me feel a little better( I had already been using it, but his dentist suggested it too).

My son is in Tae Kwon Do now so we tell him that we will tell the Master that he fights us to brush his teeth and Master will not like that. As of right now, that is helping...LOL.

I just went to Walmart and purchased new toothbrushes for my kids. They dont have problems with getting their teeth brushed. But I bought them electrical cartoon toothbrushes. Kids seem to fall for anything that has a cartoon character on it. If all else fails, you might have to do something really funny or goofy that allows him to laugh at you and think that teeth brushing is pretty cool.

Hope this helps. Mommy of a 3 1/2 yr old, 2 1/2 yr old, my baby will be 1 this Sunday, and baby #4 is due next month!

Hi,

I just have a couple of suggestions :

1. Target has some toothbrushes with a light in them when you press at the bottom. They are really cheap too. And the light flashes on/off for about a minute. Maybe he'll get excited about using that.

2. just let him hold the brush and do everything himself. Dont stress that he isnt getting his teeth clean enough. Just let him do what he can for a few days. Maybe that'll help him get over this phase.

3. Try letting him be the one to put toothpaste on his brush. If he feels more responsible for doing this he might want to do it more.

Hope this helps.

Good luck,
Aarti.

have him pick his own toothbrush. My daughter loved the music playing toothbrush.

I've had the same problem in the past and I find that making a game out of it works best. If my son (4 yrs old) doesn't want to brush his teeth I ask him to help me brush mine to get him interested. He thinks it's fun to brush mommy's teeth and then when I start spitting into the sink he wants to do it too. We make it a fun thing to "rinse and spit". I wouldn't make such a big deal about the 2 minute rule - that's quite a long time for a 3 year old to do anything!

Good luck!

What kind of toothpaste are you using? Once I switched from the toddler (OK to swallow- not spitting required) to the kids toothpaste (allowed to spit!) it was a huge difference. I also have a 3 year-old boy and he thinks being able to spit into the sink is the coolest. I also have the Imagination Movers videa and there is a song about brushing your teeth (you might be able to watch it on youtube) and my son loves to sing it while we brush his teeth. Good luck.