Well first off lets just mention two things.

1. Kids cant brush properly until they are 6-8 years old.  Apparently they dont have the fine motor skills to do it well until then.  So there are many years of brushing your childs teeth, not just 1 or 2.

2. Fluride is not something we should swallow!  Yes it’s in some people’s water (sad for those people).  Years ago in some weird misguided attempt to save our teeth from ourselves, some bright spark thought putting fluride in the water would do the trick.  But as with many many things research has proven that not only does oral doses of fluride not help us, large quantities of fluride is actually poison.  Topical aplications of fluride ARE good for the health of your teeth, however we still shouldn’t use fluride toothpaste for little ones who like to eat their toothpaste (mine) or those who can’t spit and rinse properly.  Research has also shown that kids 2-7 still swallow a fair amount of toothpaste while brushing, thats why many companies have low fluride options for that age range.  It’s up to you what you choose to use with your kids, but for me and bubba boy who has just turned two and sucks his toothbrush as soon as it’s in his mouth, it looks like it’s no fluride toothpaste for a while yet.

Anyway onto the nitty gritty.  I have read a lot about toothbrushing battles raging in bathrooms all over the world.  Luckily here in this little bathroom we have had very little in the crying, screaming and physical violence department, and bubba boy is behaves well too .  Now I’m not gunna lie and tell you after every meal it’s a breeze to brush his teeth.  Night time brushes just before bed are usually the hardest, but from what I have read what we go through here is very little compared to some people.  So I thought I’d write down some of the ways we brush bubba boys teeth.

Firstly, we started when his first tooth came through, and at that stage I was not very concerned at all.  Whoever took bubba boy into the shower or bath with us would brush our teeth while we were there (kinda of had too, it was either that or the kitchen sink), while we were brushing he got his own toothbrush which he sucked and chewed on and we left it at that.  My idea was that he would get used to having the toothbrush in his mouth and hopefully he would start to imitate us.

So the desire to be like mummy and daddy did kick in and he wanted toothpaste and he wanted to brush too.  This is when I started getting involved in the brushing.  He could play with his toothbrush while I brushed my teeth then when I was finished brushing I “swapped” with him – so that I brushed his teeth while he brushed mine.  I still use this tactic now when he’s in a really bad mood.  This is basically my fallback plan these days.

As he got a bit older and more independent we dropped that style and let him brush on his own, when he is finished then it’s mummy or daddy’s turn to brush his teeth.  Mostly this is fine.  He’s able to do something himself and he has little problem relinquishing control once he is “done”.  If we try before he is “done” it’s not so easy.  So once he is old enough to realise this could delay his bedtime we may need to add a time limit (maybe an egg-timer or 3 min song – I have read these are good tricks to add anyway to make it fun).

If he’s in a bad mood or just taking too long, we can take control without much fuss by my fave reward – tickles.  Bubba boy loves tickles.  So we say “give me an AHHHHH” and he says “no”, so we then say “give me an AHHHHH and then it’s tickles”.  Almost always gets us an “AHHHH”.  Be careful not not take too long to tickle.  Especially if your toddler is like mine and has a very short attention span.

I also have a “brush you teeth” song which I can use – it also involves tickles.  I never remember the tune I just make something new up each time, but basically I say “brush your teeth, brush your teeth, brush your brush your teeth, YAY” and then tickle.  I don’t tickle each ending or I would be there forever, also only tickling every second or third time keeps Bubba boy in anticipation, which he loves almost as much as being tickled.

Hope this gives you some ideas!

Things I have also read that could help.

Sticker charts – each time they brush they get a sticker!

Gossip – “hey daddy do you know what so-and-so did today? Brushed his/her teeth! Aren’t they fantastic”.

Selecting their own toothbrush/toothpaste.

Having their own toothbrush/toothpaste caddy. (Bubba boy has his own character toothbrush and cup)

Having character toothpaste and saying something like “lets go brush with character”.

Reading books about brushing teeth.

Having a song or egg-timer as a timer to either make them brush enough  or keep them on track.

Remember brushing your child’s teeth isn’t just about keeping their teeth healthy (although that should be a big enough reason to do it) but also to get them into the routine and habit of it as they get older.  Living in a country that has VERY POOR dental hygine I can tell you seeing people with rotting teeth is disgusting not to mention smelly!