My son will be 3 in August and doesn't understand the concept of spitting his toothpaste out. How old are they when they start spitting. We try to practice spitting every time we brush but he always swallows first and then tries to spit. I'm starting to get worried about how much toothpaste is being swallowed. Any tips to get him to spit?
Thanks!
As fluoride collects in soft tissue (like the pituitary gland) as well as hard tissue..like enamel and bone, it is important to wait on fluoride toothpastes until child can spit WELL. My dentist said about age 6 oral control is good enough for this.
Try having him practice spitting with a tiny bit of water over and over again until he gets the concept. That will give him tons of information and he may get it when it comes time to use toothpaste at night. Make sure to use words like "we spit only with toothpaste after brushing our teeth" or you will have a champion spitter at 3!
S. Silver
ProActive Parenting
www.proactiveparenting.net
If you are using a toothpaste with flouride then they have to spit. If it's a childrens training toothpaste they can swallow it. The packages usually say what kind it is.
Our Pediatric Dentis informed me that my 21 month daughter is ok swallowing her "childrens tooth paste" because we do not put much on the tooth brush. She too swallows first and then spits LOL. I have her brush then I brush them then we rinse and swoosh ( well she will swallow the water not swoosh )then we spit.... I give her all the verbals and do it with her myself but she is still not quite there yet.
Not enough flouride in childrens tooth paste to worry about k !! Have fun
Our daughter was spitting right away when she was 2. Sure, she swallowed some, but she understood she had to spit.
My daughter finally mastered the task of rinsing and spitting at about 3 1/2 yrs old. Until then, I always used a non-floride toothpaste that said it was safe to swallow. Sounds like your little guy is totally normal. When he does get the hang of it, you will all be so proud. R. Married midwife-mom of 2 at home since 2005.
Whatever kind of toothpaste you use make sure it doesn't have quanternium 15 or q15 on the ingredients list. What that is is a formaldehyde releaser. It is also found in a lot ot skin care products, including Johnson's and Johnson's baby shampoo. We don't realize what kind of toxins are in our everyday products. I found a store where it's inexpensive to shop at and they promise to never ever put any harmful chemicals or ingredients in any of their products. Educate yourselves mamas! Email me or message, I'd be happy to share more with you! ____@____.com
I hope you're using a very simple, safe toothpaste. Most common toothpastes have a warning label saying "Don't Swallow. If swallowed, call poisen control."
My son has been spitting for a while, I think late last year he started. We had (and still do) him use xylitol toothpaste, which isn't harmful if swallowed....not that you want them swallowing large amounts of it of course, but unlike flouride which is toxic in large doses, xylitol is generally quite safe.
it depends on each kid. we did find a safe toothpaste for infants that we used for my daughter and still did up until 5 or 6 just in case she did not get it all out. We used a very tiny amount each brushing but the brand was a natural brand saying it was safe for toddlers. It does not contain fluoride so that we did not have to worry about ingesting that too.
You should use the non-flouride based toddler toothpastes until he learns to spit and not swallow. My little guy didn't quite catch onto this one until he was about 4 1/2. He'll get it. But until then, you don't want him swallowing too much flouride...it can cause permanent white spot discoloration show up on their teeth. Check out the shelves when you go shopping, there's quite a few products out there that don't contain flouride...we use "Orajel toddler training toothpaste".
My son started spitting his toothpaste when he was 2. I explained to him that he can't eat toothpaste, or his tummy will hurt. It also helped for him to see his big sister spitting out her toothpaste.
As for ideas to get him to spit, can you maybe give him a little bit of something like diluted vinegar that you know he won't want to swallow? After he spits it out, tell him that's what you want him to do with the toothpaste. Just an idea.
