I have a 22 month old who refuses to put a toothbrush in his mouth. I don't use any toothpaste but I want him to get in the habit of brushing at night. I have bought different brushes, hoping he would like an electric one or one with Elmo. I've tried to brush in front of him so he will copy me and that won't work either. Any tricks?
We put the grins and giggles toothpaste (no flouride) on a toothbrush, and our son loves the berry flavor. While he's chewing, we use a washcloth to clean his teeth. He fights us, but we do it morning and night. It seems to be what works best for us.
we use oral B toothbrush and toothpaste (no floride of course) and he has no problems with it. Sometimes he lets me brush his teeth or sometimes he does it himself but never with a fight.
Good Luck.
M.
we have an 18 month old. I have always been paranoid about his teeth rotting because of all the milk he drinks. This may be unfounded, but nevertheless, I'll tell you what we've done. OUr dentist friend recommended using a damp washcloth at night and just wiping off all teeth surfaces. Well, that worked until he thought it was funny to bite the @#$&! out of me, so we started giving him his own toothbrush. WE use the earth's best organic toothpaste. He loves the toothpaste, so he loves to put the toothbrush in his mouth to suck the toothpaste off. Maybe if you let your son taste the toothpaste without the brush first and then show him how to use it later that could at least get the brush in his mouth. WE let him try brushing himself first and then if he doesn't do that great of a job, we "help" him out. Sometimes its a fight, but lately, he has been opening his mouth wide for us to help him brush. I think he just gave up on the fighting and realized it wasn't that big of a deal. (or maybe he has just been too tired lately).Well, I had no intention of writing that much, but oh well. Good luck, its kind of a struggle!!
My daughter is 23 months old and since she was 10-11 months old she has had a toothbrush. I would bring her into the bathroom with me while I was brushing and let her play with her toothbrush. I wouldn't push her to put it in her mouth. I would just let her do whatever she wanted with it. Sometimes she would put it in her mouth and sometimes she would brush the mirror with it. Now I don't even have to ask her to brush her teeth. She reminds me if I forget...Just don't fight. That is what worked for us...good luck!
