He acts like it hurts when I brush his teeth. I got him a battery powered spongebob toothbrush so it would get them cleaner in a shorter amt of time, but he acts like it's causing him pain.. any ideas?
2007-10-24 03:29:06 · 7 answers · asked by ... 1 in Health ➔ Dental
My son hates brushing his teeth also.
Let him try doing it himself first and give him a mirror to look in and then after tell him you just want to take a look and make sure he got all the spots.
Another thing I do is let him brush my teeth after I brush his, he usually looks forward to it.
2007-10-24 04:09:01 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The problem is that while an electric toothbrush is great for older children, for a 13mo old it's a bit redundant. He will be just fine with a manual, very soft toothbrush for babies. There can be too much pressure on the baby teeth w/o the ability to sense the pressure because of the mechanical-electronic feedback.
The electronic brush can also just be frightening to him.
2007-10-24 10:46:39 · answer #2 · answered by Dr. Albert, DDS, (USA) 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put aside the electric toothbrush for now and buy two manual toothbrushes. One for him and one for you. Allow him to have a go too. That is probably what most of the drama is about. He wants to do it himself. Also try brushing his teeth in front of the bathroom mirror so he can see what you are doing. The last suggestion I have is bribery. If he lets you brush his teeth, then you will let him brush yours!! Good Luck!!
2007-10-24 10:40:55 · answer #3 · answered by Emma K 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
As a mom and dentist, I had one kid who fought a little and then gave in and let it lie with just screaming. With my son however, I was afraid I would poke out his eye. Kids don't much care about character brushes and kudos to you for trying. My next best thing was to find a product called Spiffies (spiffies.com). They are a little cloth that is flavored and sweetened with xylitol (xylitol helps kill plaque). They've been a life saver. My son doesn't fight as badly (he still hates anything he's not in control of). And I still brush his teeth, but I don't worry about how clean I'm getting them. He lets me brush a little more thoroughly now (he's 20 months). My 34 month old loves the spiffies, but also loves to brush. Just so you know, you'll need to help your child with brushing until he can write his name neatly. That lets you know that he has the proper coordination to be able to do a good job brushing
2007-10-24 12:01:43 · answer #4 · answered by Helen DDS 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Call the dentist. It shouldn't hurt him unless you are brushing too hard.
2007-10-24 10:33:49 · answer #5 · answered by SandraD 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Brush lightly and gently.
2007-10-24 10:36:23 · answer #6 · answered by Maravilla 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
he doesn't like it and is hopping that by making a fuss you will stop
2007-10-24 10:37:28 · answer #7 · answered by Ben H 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋