This is part one of a two-part post. Keep reading, there really is an app…
I’m the mother of a 3 year old and also an orthodontist at Virginia Family Dentistry. Much to my dismay, I am not immune to daily tooth brushing battles. In fact, since I have seen the issues with dental decay in children first-hand, my battles may be even more elaborate.
I’ve had many of my friends ask me, as both a dentist and a mother, “How do you get your son to brush his teeth?” First, here are some suggestions as a mother for your bag of tricks you can employ depending on if Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde decides to show up that day. Next week’s post will cover my suggestions as a dentist for toddler toothbrushing.
Suggestions as a mother:
Give them color choices!
Lots of choices To keep bathroom meltdowns to a minimum, let your toddler have a choice. Keep a bunch of colorful toothbrushes in the bathroom, along with a variety of toothpaste flavors.
Make up a silly song. Not good at that? Sing this one to the tune of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat”: “Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them left to right. Brush them up and brush them down to keep them clean and white.”
A little help from a friend. Invite a stuffed friend to talk about brushing or to demonstrate brushing. Or use a puppet to grab a toothbrush and help.
Chase those “sugar bugs” away. As you are brushing give an enthusiastic play-by-play as you chase the “sugar bugs” out of their mouth. “Ooh, they’re hiding in your molars! Now they’re on top of your tongue!” (Add details about what they look like and the sugary foods they love to eat.)
Do what Elmo does! This Sesame Street video, complete with cameos from Bruno Mars, Nicole Kidman, and Wendy Williams is sure to motivate your child to brush his teeth!
Open wide. It can be hard to get him to open wide enough to get at his back teeth. Try asking him to roar like a lion or open wide like an alligator. I remember making loud silly noises that would get him to laugh and open wide!
Be a toothbrushing role model
Keep it positive! Reinforce positive brushing behavior with lots of praise. You could try a short term reward system such as stickers on a calendar for every night that brushing goes well.
Stay Consistent. Although it’s tempting to skip a night when you are exhausted, just remember, if you skip one night then it can be difficult to get back on track.
Do as I say…and as I do. From an early age, model good habits by incorporating your child in your own tooth brushing and flossing routines. As you know, our babies want nothing more than to be just like us (until they are teenagers of course!)
Last but not least, there really is an app for that. Download the Toothsavers Brushing game created by The Partnership for Healthy Mouths, Healthy Lives. My son loves brushing all the different characters’ teeth. There is also a mode that times two minutes of brushing while guiding your toddler through each quadrant and each surface of the mouth while your child is brushing. http://2min2x.org/toothsavers/
