Trouble Bruushing My 18 Month Old's Teeth!!

I was having the same problem with mine. I got her her own toothbrush to hold. So now when she opens her mouth to put her toothbrush in I put the one I am holding in. It is a mouthful but it gets the job done. While I do one side she is "brushing" the other. I put toothpaste on both brushes so at least hers is doing some good. I think she has gotten quite good at controlling her own toothbrush doing it that way. I hold her in front of the mirror so she can see what I am doing and she copies me. Hope this helps!!!

I don't know if this will work for you, but my son is almost 2 and i give him an extra toothbrush and he brushes one of his stuffed elmo's teeth while i do his.

I'll let you in on my secret. Until they can help you and want to do it is better to let it be. The breath doesn't smell bad (infection) and the teeth look clean. The number one cause of dental problems in toddlers is going to bed with a bottle. And all the brushing in the world cannot combat bottle mouth. So I guess in short as long as they are not going to bed with a bottle there is very little to worry about with not brushing.

Good luck!

HI, I have two suggestions that i have used at different times with my kiddos. I used to pretend that i was looking for animals in my sons mouth. He used to fuss and be stubborn about it, but after the first time I found a rhino in his molars or a lion tried to hide behind his top front teeth he caught on to the "game" and would open really wide so i could look for the animals.
That lasted for six months or so and then we fell out of the habit of playing and he started to get fussy again. We had been to the dentist but i don't know that that matters. I would call his name and tell him he was ready for his 7:00 pm appointment with Mommy Dentist. I would sit on the floor and have him lay on my legs with his head on my lap, sort of like being in a dentist's chair. ( the real dentist suggested having them lay down while you brush because you can get better access to the teeth) So i'd chat him up the way the dentist would, telling I was counting his teeth and they were so bright and shiny. When we were through i'd pretend to tell him to make another appointment at the front desk. It was just silliness but it worked.
My son is four now and the easter bunny just brought him a musical tooth brush. i think he's brushed 8 times since yesterday morning lol. I don't think they make them for toddlers but you could play music while you brush your child's teeth. I bet there are also books about brushing you could find at the library, or maybe a video, that might inspire your son to open wide.
Good Luck

I was told by my pediatrician that its more important at this point to get him into the habit of doing rather than the actual cleaning of teeth...So he suggested letting him do it himself. He'll like it a lot more if he doesn't think your're trying to shove something down his throat :) Also, it might help if you brush your teeth when he brushes his...

And if your worried about his oral health; apples are a good alternative to brushing. Just make sure he drinks a little bit of water afterwards!

Hope i helped! Good Luck!
C.

My kids are pretty good about brushing teeth. We buy flavored toothpaste and have toothbrushes with their favorite characters. We let them brush their teeth first then my husband and I have our turn. When we first started brushing their teeth we had major battles. I would put them in their high chairs, put toothpaste on their toothbrushes and let them play with them. I think that really helped get them interested.

My dentist said to give the baby a clean, wet rag and let her chew on it. I don't know if your son is still putting everything in his mouth but this may work. Also, keep doing your best at brushing at least once a day. Make sure he sees you brushing, it will make it seem like something he wants to do more.

You may want to try letting him try brushing. I do this the youngest. She goes and then it's my turn to brush. As long as she brushes first she's fine. We kind of make a game out of it. If not even him brushing a little bit is better than where you are now. Good Luck!

Hello, my sons were the same way, then I found the most wonderful toothbrushes at Wal-Mart. I am not sure of the exact name of them but when you push the bottom of them they light up for one minute. what I do is let my children brush their teeth themselves while I brush mine and then when the light goes out it is my turn to brush their teeth. My 2 year old always says "when the light goes out it's mommys turn". They absoulutly love feeling independant doing the job themselves but have no problem letting me have my turn now.

Hi J.,
My son who is now 25 months old once did not like to have his teeth brushed so what I started doing is trying to make it a fun thing with getting my brush and having him count my teeth with the handle side and then I would have him count his teeth with the handle side of his brush. This would lead me into using the brush side to brush my teeth and have him brush his and I told him that I would need to check them when he was done to get any spots that he missed and now he loves brushing his teeth as well as his 3 year old sister. We also do different letter sounds to get all the areas clean such as "E" for when we clean the fronts. I hope this might help you a little also. Best of luck.
~D. M~

My 17-month-old daughter also refuses to cooperate with tooth brushing. So what we do is have my husband hold her on his lap in a chair and keep hold of her hands, while I pry her mouth open and brush her teeth! (Sometimes she screams, which actually makes things easier since then her mouth is open, but other times she tries to clamp it shut!) I feel bad about doing this, but we have been told by her doctor and have read many times that brushing is important, so I just don't know what else to do. We tried buying flavored toothpaste for toddlers, but it didn't seem to matter. I would also appreciate any suggestions for making this process less unpleasant for everyone.

Have you tried doing it while he was in the tub? Use a cup of water to wet the brush & rinse. It may just throw him off course completely being in a different location and while he's getting his legs, arms, hands clean, it only makes sense to get his teeth clean, too.
Also, I liked the idea given about finding the animals in his mouth! My son is pretty good about doing it & I didn't have much trouble (nail clipping was OUR issue!) but I would suggest at least wiping off his teeth with a wet washcloth if you absolutely cannot brush them--especially if he has had milk. I've also heard that munching an apple is a sort of "natural toothbrush." Good luck.

Try having fun with it! Let him hold the toothbrush and sing a song while you teach him how to brush. "This is the way we brush our teeth, brush our teeth, brush our teeth, this is the way we brush our teeth every single morning." Get him a toothbrush with a character that he likes on it. Make sure to use kid toothpaste, it tastes great and it safe for them to swallow. Also let him see you and daddy brush your teeth as well, this teaches him that everyone does it. Hope this helps.

My son has had teeth since 4 months, and had all his teeth (short of 2 yr molars) by 15 months, so we've been brushing for a VERY long time. Our first step was making it part of our routine. Early on, I just did it for him, but once he wanted to do it, I let him. So he gets to start, and when he's done, it's my turn. I tell him what a great job he did and how much faster my turn will be because I can't find anything he missed, but I still have to look (and brush as I go!). I'm also a bit of a nut about brushing my teeth, so I leave the door open and he walks in on me brushing my teeth, and I let him take a turn brushing my teeth when I'm done, to make things fair.

Sometimes he gets fussy about letting me brush his teeth, so we have roaring contests: he loves to roar (thank you, Laurie Berkner's "We Are the Dinosaurs"), and it keeps his mouth open nice and wide - 4 or 5 roars will get the whole mouth clean.

We also use Tom's of Maine Silly Strawberry paste - he likes it, and it's safe for him.

Sugar is what rots them especially the fruit juices. but make it fun even if you just brush a little bit and tasty toothpaste or even let him watch you but if not he'll be fine before his 1st check-up then again he's not going to keep those teeth that long anyway right? you could also call a local dentist for advice.
GoodLuck! Janile (fostermom of four)

I did not read all the responses so sorry if you receive the same advice.
For my 18 mth old daughter I let her pick out her own toothbursh and bought two. We let her attempt to brush them herself and I will use the 2nd one to make sure her teeth are really getting clean. Until she can do it right I feel that it is good to get them clean anyway. I always brush my teeth at the same time and she has started to move the brush around. At first she sucked the toothbrush because she liked the taste but she actually does pretty well now.
GOOD LUCK

Join the club lol. My son is 15 months.. though he only has 4 teeth and one coming in right now he hates for me to brush his teeth. I let him do it himself and then I try to "help" him. I brush my teeth when he is brushing his and he mimics me. His Pdei. put him on flouride drops to help strengthen his teeth and keep them healthy.

My son is 18 months old also and I follow a lot of the same suggestions given by other mothers here. We brush right after bath every night when he is wrapped in a towel. I only let one arm free and I do give him his own brush, but I never let him swap with me because then it becomes a constant game. I put a little toddler toothpaste on the brush and that seems to be working for the moment. If he gets to grabby for my brush, I wrap both arms in the towel and do all the brushing. I think the most important thing is to not get frustrated. Some nights he might be more cooperative than others. For some reason, my son usually sits still if I sing "Wheels on the Bus." So, try to keep a smile on your face, your tone light, maybe sing a song and BE QUICK! I also think that it is very important to brush my sons teeth everynight, but I don't worry about getting them too good. We have had our first dentist appt 2 months ago and everything looked great.

Another strategy I'm trying is to brush my teeth with him every morning. I sit him on the toilet lid and give him a brush while I brush my teeth. They say children learn best from example, so I want to make sure he sees my husband and me brushing our teeth. After I'm done I try to get a quick turn at his teeth, but he doesn't always let me and I don't fight with him. I figure fighting once a day about it is enough. Hope this helps!