What if there are no teeth yet? The first two to four teeth can be cleaned by hand by wrapping a piece of clean bandage around your finger. When the tooth gets bigger, it's time to use a toothbrush and toothpaste like mom and dad.

It's time to figure out how to teach your child to brush his teeth. Don't wait for permanent teeth to teach your baby oral hygiene. Carious baby teeth are a dangerous source of infection, which leads to chronic colds and even diseases of internal organs.

But how to teach a child to brush his teeth if he is capricious and does not understand how important it is for his health? It's very simple: play with it!

10 IDEAS ON HOW TO TEACH A CHILD TO BRUSH TEETH BY PLAYING

Buy a fancy toothbrush. Let your child choose what he likes: a brush with a cartoon character, with sound effects, etc. Buy 2-3 varieties of children's toothpaste. Let your baby choose the flavors too. Fun brushes and different toothpastes will help maintain variety, and your child won’t get bored with brushing his teeth. For example, on weekends he brushes his teeth with strawberry toothpaste using a Winnie the Pooh brush, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays with banana toothpaste using a ghost brush.

Buy a plastic jaw model or just a toy with large, detailed teeth. This will be a model on which you and your child will learn how to properly brush children's teeth. For respectability, you can dress your child up as a dentist (white coat, gauze bandage). You can test your skills in the bathroom while brushing your own teeth.

Make an “achievements” board. This could be a cardboard sheet lined up by day. For each brushing of your teeth - one beautiful sticker on this sheet. If you collect a certain number of stickers, it’s time for chocolate. We kill two birds with one stone - we limit sweets and brush our teeth.

Maintain a competitive spirit. Make family competitions, for example, who can brush their teeth the best, who has the whitest smile, or who can foam the most while brushing (the kids will love it).

To prevent an ordinary process from turning into a routine, come up with games with the evil monster Caries, who is terribly afraid of a toothbrush, and have fun with the baby.

Play "mirror".The baby should repeat your every move. Over time, the child will get used to this game, and he will no longer have to be forced into the bathroom.

In contact with

Classmates

Pediatric dentists believe that a child is able to brush their teeth correctly and thoroughly by about eight years of age. But it is necessary to instill oral hygiene skills much earlier, even before the appearance of the first tooth.

Many parents doubt the need to carefully care for baby teeth, as they will fall out over time. However, it is a known fact that damage to the first teeth directly affects the condition of the rudiments of the molars. With inflammatory processes in baby teeth, some permanent teeth may not grow or grow in the wrong place. In addition, with dental caries, constant infection of the body and its sensitization contribute to a decrease in the immune response and the development in children of chronic tonsillitis, rheumatism, kidney diseases, joints, gastrointestinal tract and weakened vision.
Caring for baby teeth is, first of all, daily brushing of teeth, and not “after the fact” medical measures to save the tooth from caries. Therefore, it is so important for parents to start teaching their child to brush their teeth on time and to be patient, but persistent and consistent in instilling a healthy habit.
Ideally, a pediatric dentist teaches children how to brush their teeth. But this can be done no earlier than 3-4 years, when he will already consciously perceive information. And it is necessary to start cleaning the oral cavity even before the child’s first tooth appears!
Start brushing your teeth as soon as they erupt. First, they use a silicone brush that fits on an adult’s finger; from 10 months, they use a special children’s toothbrush. It must be changed at least once every 3 months. It is advisable to brush your teeth together with your baby in order to monitor the brushing process and help him if necessary.
Milk teeth, like permanent teeth, are brushed at least twice a day. If after eating it is not possible to brush your teeth, use children's mouth rinses, dental wipes, etc. These “special products” are good because, as a rule, they taste good, are well accepted by children and contain xylitol to improve the microflora in the mouth and inhibit carious bacteria.
For example, Spiffies dental wipes allow you to unobtrusively teach young children about oral hygiene, which is very important for overall health. These wipes are a convenient means of personal hygiene for children aged 4-15 months, until the child gets used to the toothbrush. There is no need to rinse your mouth after using the wipes, since the impregnation contains xylitol, which helps prevent caries. Spiffies First Teeth Wipes are recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Clinical trials have shown that Spiffies dental wipes are effective in removing plaque and are perceived more positively by children than a toothbrush. In 2010, Spiffies Napkins received the prestigious “Mark of Product Quality” award from the US National Center for Education.

But what should you do if you explained everything to your child, bought a toothbrush and tasty toothpaste, but he doesn’t want to brush his teeth?
Often mothers complain that they themselves are well aware of the need to carefully care for baby teeth, regularly tell their children about this, buy bright brushes, but nevertheless children do not want to brush their teeth and either actively oppose this process or get off with a few “formal » brush movements. What to do in this case?
First of all, parents need to take these whims calmly and understand that the child is not protesting out of the blue. Do you want to know how the 5-year-old child you are trying to get to brush all his teeth with the correct sweeping motion feels? Try brushing your teeth with your left hand if you are right-handed. Surely after this experiment you will be much more tolerant of your child.
Well, the most important thing for building skills is to start on time. Baby teeth should be cared for immediately after the first tooth appears. This is especially important for bottle-fed children and for those who drink formula, juice or kefir at night - these drinks contribute to the development of bottle caries. Twice a day, and always after night feeding, carefully wipe your teeth with a damp cotton swab, gauze soaked in boiled water, or a baby dental wipe.

Pay special attention to the transition to the gums and - if many teeth have already erupted - to the chewing surfaces and spaces between the teeth.
When your baby is about two years old, you can teach him to rinse his mouth after eating. Give him a toothbrush for training (a thick handle with a small head, soft synthetic bristles), first without toothpaste. Of course, he will only chew it, but at the same time he will get used to using this item and regularly taking care of his teeth. You must monitor the quality of brushing yourself, since children begin to brush their teeth thoroughly and correctly at about eight years of age.
You can look for a good dentist; among them there are real masters of child psychology. In modern dental clinics, children are shown funny educational cartoons that teach them how to brush their teeth. Using special dummies, the doctor clearly demonstrates his teeth-brushing skills to his young patients. As a result, daily brushing of teeth turns from a tedious procedure into an exciting game.
It is very important that oral hygiene becomes part of the child’s daily routine, and not a one-time event. Try to ensure that your child does not take care of his teeth “under pressure”, otherwise in adolescence he may, out of a sense of protest, refuse to brush his teeth imposed by his parents - and end up with health problems.
So, a few rules for parents:

Brushing your teeth is a game!
The easiest way to teach your child to brush their teeth is to make the process fun. A child should not perceive brushing his teeth as a difficult and unpleasant task. Use your child's hobbies: if he likes to play secret agents, explain that his teeth should not smell bad, so as not to declassify him.

Arming ourselves against caries
Together with your child, buy a beautiful children's toothbrush in accordance with his age. Next, purchase a children's toothpaste that tastes good like ice cream, bubble gum, cola, fruit, or berries.

Mom asks for help
Allow your child to brush his teeth on his own, even if he is not doing well yet. And so that he gets used to doing it correctly, invite him to brush your teeth or the teeth of your favorite doll. You can also involve older brothers and sisters in this activity. And be sure to brush your child’s teeth properly yourself!

Show me some hocus pocus!
Take your child to a dental clinic where a hygienist works. He has a special product that he coats the teeth with, and then he asks the child to brush his teeth. After this, they show him the colored spots in the mirror or on the monitor that remain uncleaned. Very clear, absolutely harmless: the dye was designed specifically to teach children oral hygiene.

Thorough brushing twice a day can prevent many oral problems, as long as it is done regularly. Even if you want to occasionally pamper your child (in honor of a weekend, a holiday, or the arrival of guests), it is important not to compromise on things that are important for his health and to instill in him the need to take care of his teeth. Your baby will be able to smile his beautiful and charming smile if he gets used to the idea that after eating and before going to bed his teeth must be brushed.
In addition, do not forget about the educational power of visual example! It is better to brush your teeth in a disciplined manner in the presence of your child twice a day, without any allowance for laziness, busyness or fatigue. This will have a much stronger effect on the baby than fairy tales about the Tooth Fairy and scary stories about “cavity monsters.”

I thought I was fine. I started teaching my son quite early on the need to brush his teeth, and he happily ran to the bathroom every time I suggested that he do it. But then suddenly I bought him a new toothpaste and, without trying it, gave him a brush.

The paste had a slight menthol taste. My son’s face grimaced and he began making gestures to ask me to wash the paste out of his mouth. We did it right away. But since then he has not wanted to brush his teeth. I tried different pastes and brushes, but it didn't help. I tried to do it myself “because it’s necessary,” but I was very afraid that it would ruin my son’s relationship with the process itself.

I ended up finding a few tips and tricks that help us and hopefully can help other parents.

• Make brushing your teeth a daily ritual. Children, especially young children, very quickly get used to repetitive actions. They like predictability. If you do something yourself for a certain number of days in a row in a certain order, don't be surprised if they keep telling you to do it if you forget yourself. So make sure your child gets used to the fact that brushing their teeth after breakfast and before bed is a natural and integral part of your daily routine. Go brush your teeth yourself, and prepare a brush for your child. Children love to copy their parents. He may want to repeat after you.

• Let you have several options for cute and bright brushes and pastes with different flavors. And instead of asking your child if he will brush his teeth, you can ask him what brush he will use or what toothpaste he wants to use today.

• Get a separate brush for his favorite toys and brush his teeth with them too. At the same time, explain during the process the necessity and importance of what you are doing. Tell us about how you clean off pieces of food stuck between teeth, germs, plaque from the fact that, for example, Bunny also ate candy. Children love to do things together with their favorite toys. First for them, then for him, then for mom.

• Come up with some small rewards after brushing your teeth - stickers, a special rare game that you don't always allow (like kinetic sand if you limit playing with it), a favorite book to read, or even a walk . “Let’s brush our teeth and immediately go outside to get dressed.”

• If none of these methods help, you can take a piece of gauze (or bandage), wrap it around your finger and brush your baby's teeth this way. You can even use a little toothpaste on the gauze this way.

• Let him choose his own brush and toothpaste. Children love independence. Perhaps the fact that he bought his own brush and toothpaste will inspire him to use them.

• For older children, you can use a “schedule” for brushing their teeth. On one side there is a column of days of the week, on the other side there are columns with day/night marks. There may be, for example, four such weeks. For every week that teeth are brushed, the child receives one star. When a child collects four stars, he can be awarded a pre-agreed reward.

Brushing teeth is not always a quick and easy process with young children. Sometimes they simply resist, since for them this is also a kind of manifestation of independence and independence. It is their choice whether to clean or not. They won't be able to resist forever. It is necessary to brush your teeth. This is not just something that popped into your head, it is part of personal hygiene integral to a healthy person. Therefore, even if your child is not enthusiastic about brushing his teeth, if he does not give in to your attempts to brighten up and cheer up the process, he will have to get used to the fact that it is still a necessity. With small children, everything takes longer - dressing, eating, traveling, brushing teeth. You just need to be patient. By the age of 5-6, children can usually brush their teeth themselves, although, of course, this process should not be allowed to get out of their own control.

Be sure to take your child to the pediatric dentist for regular checkups, and your doctor may have ideas on how to help get your child accustomed to brushing. Perhaps his authority will help the baby be more attentive to this.

What to do if your child doesn't want to brush his teeth? was last modified: March 28th, 2018 by Olga Borovskikh

Despite doctors' recommendations, parents often skip or completely ignore brushing their teeth. The baby was fussy before bed - you don’t have to clean it, just let him calm down. Did you wake up at night? I'll give him warm milk or compote and let him fall asleep.

Why doesn't my child want to brush his teeth?

One of the possible options is resistance from the parents themselves. They can be understood: every time dealing with a child’s hysteria, organizing long sessions of indoctrination about the benefits of hygiene are not pleasant tasks. However, if parents do not insist on mandatory brushing of teeth at a set time and do not control the process, then this becomes an optional procedure for the child.

Here are a few more examples of how parents themselves can provoke refusal of hygiene procedures:

If a mother scolds a child for not brushing his teeth well or not rinsing the sink after himself, the child’s motivation drops.

Parents force their child or use force if they brush his teeth themselves. In the child’s mind, the procedure of brushing teeth becomes associated with pain and unpleasant emotions.

The child is stimulated with horror stories: they tell about a woman who is watching from behind bars, they promise that if you don’t brush your teeth, they will all fall out, they scare you with the dentist.

The child does not have enough skills. He is not yet physically able to coordinate his movements and needs help from his elders, and his parents believe that he is deliberately playing around or pretending that he cannot.

How to teach a child to brush their teeth?

Dentists recommend starting oral hygiene procedures long before the appearance of the first tooth. The very first hygiene procedures in a child’s oral cavity are wiping the gums with special napkins. The next step is a silicone toothbrush. In parallel with it or later, you can introduce a toothbrush for the little ones.

With the appearance of the first teeth, the child needs to buy a toothbrush, and the mother should brush her teeth in the morning and evening. After a year, you can try to use a brush on your own, and from the age of two (if there are no other recommendations from dentists) you need to add a special children's paste.

What will help a child develop a healthy habit?

Personal example. Take your child in your arms and show how you brush your teeth. Be sure to say that you are going to brush your teeth, and dad brushes, and mom, and grandparents.

Game elements. Speak to the teeth on behalf of the brush: “What did you eat today, teeth? Can I have a look? Show! Oh, here's porridge, here's soup, here's an apple. Can I clean you up? Every tooth wants to be clean and shiny, but the porridge gets in the way.”

Attract toys. Let your child brush the teeth of dolls, bears and dogs. If he becomes interested in this action, tell him how glad the dog is that she has clean teeth, how beautiful they are now.

Create rituals. You can brush your favorite toys before you go brush with your child. You can come up with a special song for your teeth that you sing before brushing.

Motivate your child. This can be a physical reward or praise, you can collect chips or colored buttons, and when you reach a certain number, spend them on something interesting (for example, 60 chips - going to the game center or buying a toy).

Watch the cartoon and for example, the cartoon “Good Doctor Dentist” and play games about dentists. Choose your child's favorite characters and find an episode where they brush their teeth.

Use useful apps. In the world of technology, there are many “helpers” for children. Download special applications ( Children's doctor: dentist , the game “My Dentist” - there are quite a lot of them), where fairy-tale characters encourage the child and encourage him to brush his teeth, signal how long to brush and suggest how. You can also purchase books for little ones about brushing their teeth. In addition, you can play YouTube videos for your child like “Brush your teeth song”- there are several of them.

You will find even more examples of motivations for children regarding brushing their teeth, as well as many others - when a child does not want to get dressed, eat, sleep, or put away toys - in the collection "Pantry of Motivational Ideas", which all course participants receive “Obedient baby in 4 weeks”. It contains the best ideas tested by mothers, students of the School of Psychology for Moms, which help their children cope with their reluctance to do what they need to do more willingly and more fun.

Brushing your teeth thoroughly twice a day can prevent many oral problems, but it is only when it is regular. Even if you want to occasionally pamper your child (in honor of a weekend, a holiday, or the arrival of guests), it is important not to compromise on things that are important for his health and to instill in him the need to take care of his teeth.

Parents want to motivate their child to brush their teeth in one of two situations.

The Montessori way in the first case, when you need to teach a hygienic technique to a two-year-old who does not yet know it:

• Be a model of the behavior you want to teach. Adults do not hide from their children that they brush their teeth themselves.
• Create conditions for your child to repeat your behavior. It is necessary to organize convenient independent access to a sink, personal toothbrush and toothpaste for all family members, taking into account growth and capabilities.
• An action algorithm that is feasible to implement. You need to think in advance about how to show your baby the whole procedure so that he understands what you are doing, how, and can repeat it. Then show, slowly, clearly, clearly performing every action and movement.
• Allow to exercise. In most cases, having become interested in a new activity, the child wants to try it out, perform the procedure for its own sake, for the sake of creating an understanding of the process and consolidating the skill. If initiative is not impeded, then such immersion in the process makes it possible to fully develop both motivation and the necessary skills. You are not obliged to encourage the inappropriate use of expensive children's toothpaste, but the amount that will be spent on brushing your teeth for the sake of teaching yourself about it will not be wasted. Don't suppress desired behavior to save supplies. Once the novelty wears off, on the other hand, it will sometimes be necessary to help brush your teeth regularly according to a routine as well as washing your hands on time. If the process is well integrated into your daily routine, you will rarely need reminders.

There is a set of ideas, friendly to the Montessori method, for the second case, when you need to teach a two-year-old child to regularly brush his teeth, who has already become familiar with the procedure, but for some reason does not like it.

If such a problem arises, it is advisable to first take a short break. Explain that for a specific time it will be possible not to engage in a repulsive activity, and visually show this period in any way understandable to the child: by crossing off days in a special calendar or using a series of removable chips, a beautiful diagram, a list with checkboxes...

If you can already talk to your child, choose a moment when he is in a good mood and discuss what exactly is unpleasant for him about cleaning, what he would like. Whether such a conversation is possible or not, it’s worth going to the store together and letting your child choose from several options that are acceptable to you: a toothbrush, toothpaste, and additional accessories like a cute hourglass. Ceremoniously place the new tools in a convenient place. Set a day for you to try out the new items and try to create an atmosphere of positive anticipation for that day.

Be a good example yourself and have a personal hygiene routine that shows that brushing your teeth regularly applies to everyone. Explain at a level the baby can understand why it is important to keep our biting and chewing apparatus clean. Do not intimidate doctors under any circumstances, but tell them clearly that dirt threatens the health of your teeth.

After the agreed period, solemnly begin to implement the new tradition in the morning and evening.

If the rebranding does not attract the child with its novelty enough to overcome the previous hostility, then it will still give rise to the reintroduction of the rule “every teeth are brushed twice a day.” For this, all the techniques that are described for establishing any new rule are valid, up to the choice: “you clean it yourself, or I will help you.” It is important that if the child chooses your help due to his procrastination, then the main result should be help, and not high-quality teeth cleaning. Any forced entry into the body of a small person is undesirable and is just as gross an intrusion into the holy of holies for him as for an adult. That is, any enemas, forced feeding of pills or brushing of teeth is an extreme measure, which is important to be surrounded by delicacy, explanations and understandable conditions, and used when you have done enough to avoid it, but the threat to health outweighs the harm from humiliation. Fortunately, the choice between “on your own and not on your own” is far from the only one: no one forbids you to choose from your two brushes, to brush yourself with mom or dad, to your favorite music or not, to spit in the sink or in the bathroom, with your eyes open or closed . It's helpful to shift your focus to something interesting you'll do immediately after you're done with that item in your daily routine.

As with everything, this pedagogical task is an occasion for creativity.