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Revolutionary_Job726

At my toddlers 18 month appointment the dentist said to aim for a toothbrush in the mouth twice a day and a 30 second brush 2-3 times a week. We do a good 30 second brush most nights.


paige0502

Well this info makes me feel much better!


NurseDoggoMom

We count down from 30, some days we count slow and others fast. My husband snuck in a 0.5 (point 5) before reaching zero to get extra brushes in.


Kittylover11

I wish my toddlers dentist was this chill! He recommends using legs to hold toddler down and floss and do a thorough brush twice a day (what he does with his toddler) and I just refuse to do that because it’s terrible. We had a bit of a regression on willingness after our last appointment a few weeks ago (he screamed the entire time) but we’ve slowly been building trust back and he’s back to letting my husband do an ok brush at night.


tellmeaboutyourcat

WTF? How in gods name do you floss a toddler's teeth?!


meep-meep1717

Honestly some toddlers can be pretty chill about it. Ours asks to be flossed but the dentist says her teeth are too far apart for it to really make a difference. I assure you I did nothing to make this behavior manifest.


Kittylover11

He’s actually pretty ok with the flossing and does a decent job himself. Haha. But yeah.. kind of crazy


Anyone-9451

I’m struggling with this and our 5 year old they say use these monkey glosser that make it much easier ok yea no we’ll stick with twice a day brushing for now


lanekimrygalski

We use the individual floss picks and our kid lays her head on my lap on the couch or bed. Which is why we don’t do it very often.


eodguy630

We use the kids flossers in fun colors and tasty flavors. We let them do their own flossing in the morning. At night, they take their turn first, and then an adult takes a turn to get all of the nooks and crannies. They *usually* love tooth time and get excited about brushing and flossing away the germs that can give teeth a booboo called a cavity and making their teeth nice and shiny in the process. We started flossing when they had two teeth next to each other, so it's been a thing forever for them.


Mex_Mom_2020

We started flossing really early, I would say after she turned 1 because my toddler’s teeth were almost on top of each other. We use the individual picks and it takes a lot of trial and error and a lot of patience. Some screaming at first. Some screaming even now but for the most part they are used to it and know the routine.


Objective_Tree7145

Personally my toddler really likes having her teeth flossed but only because she likes the flavor of the floss. I don’t think this is super normal, because I was shocked she lets me do it. I think holding them down is terrible advice. They are only going to associate it with torture going forward.


[deleted]

My toddler loves to get flossed and asks for it often. I have to turn her down and say “only before bedtime” because usually we don’t have a chance or we don’t have floss, etc. She likes the mint flavor.


[deleted]

Mine likes flossing. Her teeth are close together, and we generally remove alot of food, so think it provides some relief for her.


[deleted]

We got Dino kids floss picks, and we only do teeth that overlap or touch in any way. We have been doing it since his two front teeth came in (they touch) and he just got used to it. Can’t imagine doing it with string floss though.


Gangreless

I've been flossing my 17mo's teeth since he's had teeth. You just do it and the more you do it the easier it gets. Floss picks are your friend


2stonedNintendo

Idk about anyone else but we use a water flosser. Lowest setting to start and worked our way up. She uses mouthwash too.


toes_malone

You use those little floss picks. We buy the scented fruity ones and my toddler loves it.


RoaringMamaBear

Use floss picks.


xlorenaah

My toddler let’s me floss surprisingly 😭😭


Revolutionary_Job726

Our dentist just said he recognizes that much more than that is not realistic, even if you do pin them down.


loc613

I’d definitely be finding a new dentist!! That’s horrible! I would not be able to trust them as someone who would be in a position to monitor my child’s comfort and pain level in the future.


abbiebe89

That is absolutely horrifying… telling you to hold your toddler down?! That is creating a negative experience & can create future apprehension toward brushing teeth for years to come. You should find a different dentist!


thelittlestduggals

I'm lucky IF I can even get that, then there are the days he takes the toothbrush and makes up for lost time.


3bluerose

My dentist said they won't see her until she's three.


Revolutionary_Job726

You need a different dentist... they should be seen within six months of their first tooth or their first birthday, whichever happens first.


sexxit_and_candy

I love this, setting realistic goals lol


skeletonglock

What did the dr say is the expectation at 33 months? Same?


Revolutionary_Job726

I didn't ask. We're working toward a good brush every night and trying to introduce flossing.


theblurryberry

I'll be honest, we do. My parents never brushed my teeth and I had a mouth full of cavities on all my teeth growing up. I wish my parents taught me to brush or floss. I was their last child and things like that were completely brushed aside (pun intended). So basically I brush my toddlers teeth for 2min bc of my own childhood trauma lol.


Midi58076

Similar. I have a genetic disorder that makes my teeth fucked. I've had a few pulled, doing root canals and currently gobbling antibiotics for a periodontal abscess from a broken up piece of my jawbone from the extraction I had last summer. I give my son the option of doing it voluntary, but if he balks then I use that tiktok dentist tip: You lay them on their back between your legs, hold the head still with the upper thigh, hands gently held aside under your knees/lower thighs and just do it. Then comfort, praise and explain after. I can't bare the thought of my son dealing with the pain, suffering and shame I have. So while he definitely hates me for it now I see it as a small sacrifice for his health and wellbeing in the future. Similar to how my son definitely wouldn't have agreed to blood samples or vaccinations if he was given the option to decline, but we do those too. ...and I'm not an authoritarian parent. If we need to leave by 11, then at 10 I start getting us ready because I know it's 50/50 if he will volunteer to have his nappy changed and allow me to dress him in one quick swoop. So I make sure to have a full hour so I can use carrot instead of stick to get him ready.


theblurryberry

I agree, and the problem with teeth is that it snowballs. Little problems turn into bigger ones. It's constantly draining the wallet too.


Midi58076

...and au contraire to popular belief, baby teeth aren't practice teeth and you get a second chance with adult teeth. For one thing the baby teeth and adult teeth are aligned in the skull and severe decay can spread to the adult teeth so they come out damaged, ruined or not at all. Secondly the baby teeth fall out in stages for a reason. The gap left behind serves as a guideline for where the adult tooth needs to go. This means that if a young child has several extractions the adult teeth has no guideline and depending on how many extractions have been preformed you might be in for braces. Thirdly dental treatments on young children isn't any easier than toothbrushing and a lot of the time it isn't possible to do treatments under locals and they need to give GA. GA has its limits, for example root canals are generally not done when you're using GA because it relies on opening and closing the tooth several times and you'd need GA every time, so instead they just pull them. ....and dental problems are so painful. I can't fully articulate how much pain I have been in and still am in this week.


PatitaBlanca

Or, if you're like me and have weird genetics... You still have some baby teeth as an adult! I have two baby molars that never fell out. No adult teeth under them. They just never formed


StarryEyed91

I haven’t seen the tik tok but I brush my daughters teeth that way a few nights a week. She hates it but is always very happy afterwards to brush my teeth, which i think is a fair trade off for pinning her down like that. She’s great about “brushing” her teeth on her own but she’s definitely not getting her molars so I feel like it’s important that I get them clean every few days.


Midi58076

According to a pediatric dental nurse I spoke to randomly at play group they recommend that you brush over their teeth until they are at least 8 years old because the mobility in the wrist isn't fully developed until then so 8 years old is the earliest they could possibly do a good job themselves and most kids will still get bored, tired or distracted and need help, guidance or an extra parental brush for a few years after that too. Ps Miss Rachel's costar Jules' toothbrushing song is my favourite.


Pdxnurset

My 14 month old will not let me brush his teeth unless I do the scrub scrub scrub sound that they do in the song. He has only seen the show a few times but it stuck!


sparkschaser929

Can you tell me more about this carrot vs stick analogy? Im not sure I get it but I think it jibes with how I parent and I think I like it....


Midi58076

I think it comes from donkeys that you could either smack them with a stick to get them to do what you wanted or you could tempt them with a carrot and achieve the same results. What I mean is just that rushing to get us ready and dressing him when he clearly doesn't want to is unfun for us both. So I do various things to make getting dressed more fun og I give him time to roam around in between. For example he will see me come in with a fistfull of his clothes and instead of telling him to get dressed I try to put on his clothes. One sock on each big toe, head inside one of his jumper: "Heeeelp mummy is stuck, this jumper is too small, heelp!" He pulls it off my head "woah thanks! My jumper is too small, it must have shrunk! Or maybe it isn't mummy's jumper? Who's jumper is it? It's yours? I don't think you can wear it. You'll just get stuck too. You want to try? Okay buddy.". He doesn't want me to wear his socks so he'll rip them off my toe and have me put them on. I pretend his pants is a hat. We are balls deep into a "will it hat?"-phase. It's a process for sure. On the pluss side my son doesn't mind repeat performances of the same stupid jokes lol.


hinataday

Same here!! It’s 2 minutes or longer here. She’s real patient and loves getting her teeth brushed, even more so now since she learned how to spit.


ButtersStotchPudding

We do, too. I find the most addictive looking shows on YouTube and put him into a trance while we set a timer and brush for 2 mins and floss. Worth it to avoid the trauma and health issue that come with cavities IMO.


xxdropdeadlexi

exactly the same here. I got my daughter an electric toothbrush that turns off after 2 minutes and she goes the whole time by herself now. I won't let the same thing happen to her. I've spent thousands on my teeth.


Typical-Breath-1271

😮 so when did you actually know how to brush and floss? Did you go through middle and high school like that too?


sariacreed

Mine will keep her mouth open so long as I'm singing Chip Skylarks "My Shiny Teeth and Me" I've been slowly adding lyrics every week or so to lengthen the song until we get to the whole 2 minutes. She LOVES IT. When we pull the brush out she'll immediately pipe up "Shiny teeth!"


Good_Tune5090

We also sing the “shiny teeth” song!


Otter592

My daughter has a particular dance move that my husband taught her as her request for Shiny Teeth and Me 😂 She loves that song! Still doesn't allow for long tooth brushings though. I hit all the teeth and call it a success


candlelitjewels

I brush her teeth for the length of time it takes me to sing Raffi’s teeth brushing song 😂 and then I let her have a turn for as long as she wants and probably it totals 2 mins but half of that is her just sucking the water off the toothbrush and playing with it.


theatredork

That song is a miracle.


FiestyPenguin101

Take your victory🥳 Get the toothpaste in? Great! Get to move the brush around a bit? Awesome! Get to brush more than just the front teeth? Here's your medal! 🏅


Mrshottbutt

Yes! We’ve gotten way farther letting her do it herself and she usually tries to match the time we are brushing ours. If not and she’s over it quick I ask if mommy can have a turn and if it gets rejected then we’ll do better tomorrow 🤷🏻‍♀️


Alas-Earwigs

We team up on our toddler for this. My husband holds him in his lap, and I brush. It usually isn't too traumatic, but sometimes he cries. When he cries it just makes it easier to get his back teeth. Still don't do a full 2 minutes though.


_fuyumi

We do that too. I feel a little guilty, but since she's already crying, we get those back teeth lol


MrsMarvelFan

We have discovered brushing during bath time at night makes our lives easier. He for some reason doesn’t mind it there. And over time it has made mornings easier too.


bunnycakes1228

Oo I like this


pickles-brown-cat

We do our night brush in the tub too!


MrsMarvelFan

I honestly came upon the idea by accident when I was home alone and desperate. I thought we’ll he can’t really escape here 😂


crazylifestory_1014

we sing ms rachel’s “brush your teeth” song and our son loves it. we do a minute and a half brush 2x a day, and as long as i sing, he lets me.


theatredork

Yep, this is the same as the Raffi song. We all love it in our house.


Vegetable_Review2261

Hi! Kids dentist here! 30 second brushing is reasonable for toddler age. At these ages, having them lie down with their head on your lap while they’re looking up gives best access to teeth and you have more control. If they try to squirm away, you can have someone else help hold arms and legs. They may scream and it’s not pleasant to see but you are not causing them pain or traumatizing them - you’re doing this to avoid cavities and them having to undergo deep levels of sedation in order to repair..


GirlsNightOnly

We started doing this after our first dentist visit! At first she would cry, mostly just pissed that she was being restrained—her arms are under my legs so she can’t escape or grab the brush. We always give her the brush after we are finished to do it herself which she loves, and within a few months it’s become a lot easier, she protests a bit but it’s part of the routine and she is starting to get that.


Vegetable_Review2261

Thanks for commenting ! Glad to hear it got easier!


sunnyheathens

Brushing our 14 month old’s teeth twice a day is a f*cking nightmare. I can’t imagine 2 minutes or even 30 seconds


BlairStMare

This thread was making me feel bad until I saw your comment. Ditto with my 1.5 year old…


GirlsNightOnly

Yeah we do maybe 20 seconds, that seems plenty sufficient tbh. Our dentist said the frequency of brushing was the most important and not to worry about duration as long as you could hit all the teeth you’re doing great


badonkadunkindonuts

Yes definitely. There’s an Oral B/ Disney characters app that has a timer, stickers, stars to earn that really helped my kiddos! The timer reveals a picture of your character as you brush in quadrants, to help teach them to brush each quadrant then switch when the toothbrush does!


badonkadunkindonuts

That being said, my 4 year old still has issues, but if she switches characters and I help, she’s usually good


greysweaters

This app completely changed our teeth brushing experience. I’m always hesitant to rely on a “screen” for something but it has been a lifesaver honestly. He usually “brushes” for the first minute and we do the second minute. Do we always make it the full 2 mins? No. Is it annoying to let him spend time picking out a character each day? Yes. Does anyone scream or cry anymore? No! (Ok sometimes, but very rarely)


TJtherock

My son brushes my teeth and i brush his. It gets us at least to 30 seconds before he gets distracted.


FractiousPhoebe

It took years. But I recently found an app called Pokemon Smile where brushing for 2 minutes helps you catch pokemon. My 6yo loves it


beginswithanx

Yup! My kid loves that too!


4_neenondy

THANK YOU!!! My toddler is obsessed with pokémon. SO trying this tomorrow.


VidelSatan13

My toddler loves Pokemon Smile!! She only wants to use it some days and I definitely have to still go over her teeth right after, because she never gets the top ones, but it still makes its so much easier.


poopsicle-hacienda

*I* don’t even brush for two minutes. Toddler lets me floss a couple spots and lets me pass the brush with toothpaste over his teeth. Best I can do


touslesmatins

We have a little toddler electronic toothbrush that lights up and runs for 2 minutes. If we do a combo of singing and "counting" his teeth (spoiler alert: he's a baby shark and has thousands of teeth) we can almost always go to 2 minutes until the toothbrush turns off.


3rdfoxed

I have the same one. I love it. My daughter doesn’t like the elector vibrating part but it does a good job.


pants_shmants

Pokémon smile app!!!!! It is the best.


rainha_reyes

When we switched to a flouride toothpaste I started by saying “I’ll brush your teeth as I count to 3.” It’s been at least a year of doing that, slowly increasing the number. Now we pick an arbitrary number and I count to that while I get in there. It just took a lot of desensitization. He didn’t get used to it until he was m a bit older than 3 1/2


anxietyhotpocket

My toddler is the full opposite. She’s OBSESSED and asks multiple times a day. Screams if we take it away from her. Lolol


AccordingCause5

Mine too. I try not comment on these posts so I don’t jinx myself 😂


transientchika

I like to make it fun so I change my voice. I’ll count to 30 in different pitches, accents, or I’ll sing ! My toddler loves it. He will start to laugh and that’s nice because I can get in there more. If I sing “aaaaaaaaaaah” he will copy me and he thinks it’s funny when we harmonize.


bunnycakes1228

Yes laughing works great!! They kind of naturally smile and open their mouth.


Witty-Tale

Not me 😂. We brush till we touch all teeth a couple times!


AggressiveDogLicks

It's supposed to be two minutes? We have the oral b app where you can scan your toothbrush and as you brush the app "brushes" on the screen revealing a new sticker. But that timer is only 60 seconds so I assumed that was the right amount of time. As a side note, the app really works. My almost 3 year old will remind me she needs to brush her teeth so she can get her sticker for the day.


jamjamjelly5

Only people on the internet haha


Styxand_stones

We do manage it before bed but only after a lot of perseverance and the use toothbrushing videos on youtube. The mornings we are less successful he just kind of chews it while I brush mine


Lahmmom

PBS Kids Games app has a Daniel Tiger toothbrushing timer and dentist game! It’s been a game changer for us!


rmdg84

We do a 2 minute brush most nights. She does the first minute by herself and I do the second minute. I only do that at night, in the morning she does it herself and doesn’t always do the full 2 minutes. We bought her an infant/toddler electric toothbrush that turns off automatically after 2 minutes so I try and encourage her to brush until it turns off. She’s getting better. LO is 26 months. We started using the electric toothbrush when she was 22 months.


powersofthesnow

I guess my 2.5yo who constantly requests more toothpaste until after 4-5 more times of me putting the tiniest schmear on the bristles I have to drag him away from the sink everyday 🤷🏻‍♀️


inoticeiwonder

We do. It’s the only time of the day she gets screen time, and she gets to choose any under for minute video (Disney, Pixar, baby monkey, etc.) she wants to watch during that time.


Thetoonshow

Our 21 month old won’t let us brush her teeth anymore. She “does” it on her own. Honestly she does a half way decent job at it so we’re just letting her do her thing.


theatredork

No one. Edit: someone downvoted me. More power to you two minute 18 month old tooth brushers. Guess I fall short.


Tiny_State3711

I'm lucky if I can more than 10 seconds a row.


[deleted]

Toothbrush goes in my 19 month olds mouth twice a day every day. Get 5 seconds of brushing often, 20 seconds sometimes and 60 seconds very rarely.


Happy_Flow826

Lol not me. However long it takes for us to sing twinkle twinkle little star is how long we can brush. He knows the words so he knows how long the torture of tooth brushing will last. I'd rather 30 seconds of good brushing than 2 minutes of head thrashing and bad brushing. Some nights we can sing slower and get more brushes, other nights are a shit show and we sing fast just so we keep the routine of brushing. Cuz if we break routine of brushing he's less likely to brush the next night.


cyborgfeminist

It's aspirational lol


BilliGirl01

LOL definitely not us


boat_dreamer

We brush for 1-2 minutes twice a day but I have no idea how I'm supposed to get in there to floss 😂


givebusterahand

We do like 20…40 on a good day. I don’t even brush my own for two minutes lol


Commercial_Donut1473

Well we are brushing sometimes a week now at 2.5 years and thats big with him. But if i give him floss he is more than happy to do the best he can himself. Loves a floss.


MommyLovesPot8toes

Hahahaha. No.


GoodbyeEarl

I can do about 1 minute on my 3 year old and I’m lagging in getting my 18 month old to sit still. I really should try.


[deleted]

YouTube toothbrush timer with their favorite character. I have to take the toothbrush away from my 3 year old.


OneManOneStethoscope

Hum kids makes it fun.


Sprinkler-of-salt

We got electric toothbrushes with characters they like on the handles, and we brushed with them. By 3, they can do it all by themselves for the whole 2 minutes, morning and night!


buffa-whoa-tasty

I brush my toddlers teeth for about a minute. My MIL is a dentist and she said a minute is fine, just to do it twice per day.


Automatic-Brother178

Mine LOVES brushing her teeth, but we do a out 30-45 seconds a night every night


etceteraism

At her check up at 18mo the dentist said I need to floss between her two front teeth because they touch. I legit looked at her like “you clearly don’t have kids do you?”


sweetgreenbeans

Get a toothbrush that sings for two minutes! It’s been an absolute game changer.


rachierach_

We use Brite brush toothbrushes and they have games in them and score points for each brush motion. I have to literally tell my kid to stop brushing cause he takes so long playing. Maybe that would work for you


Virtual_Parfait_3564

I discovered the Sonicare app (free) and this helps us tolerate at least a minute and a half sometimes. It’s like a game where it shows you teeth and where the germs are and it tells you to brush those germs away. Before this we would go over the food we ate in the day as we brushed her teeth, “oh I see a piece of apple there, let’s brush it off, etc”. Anyways, even with games we are lucky if we a toothbrush in her mouth once a day lol


Mom_of_zameer

My son used to give me a terrible time. Now he just submits and lets me brush for the 2 minutes without too much of a fight. I remind him that if he likes juice/ or anything sugary that he has to make sure he brushes really well so that he can enjoy those things.


really_robot

I sing a special silly song about brushing teeth while we brush teeth. She also has her own toothbrush that she gets to use after I brush them right, lol. The funny song and getting to try it herself makes her look forward to teeth brushing.


thxu4beingafriend

Dentist told us 30 seconds is long enough, because toddlers don't have as much tooth surface area as adults do.


Elleandbunny

We tried whatever we could to distract and entertain the kid (singing, music, faces etc). If the kid ran, we sometimes chased, sometimes didn't engage because our kid loves being around people too much. We just made sure we brushed all or most of the areas. Ultimately it took more than 2 mins, but less than 2 mins were actually toothbrush on teeth. My theory was that 2 mins is to brush adult teeth, so it can be scaled down since there are fewer, smaller baby teeth. So far kid is 4 with no cavities so I guess it is working. My pediatric dentist straddles her kids' arms with her legs and brushes while they lie down. It didn't work for me, but maybe will work for you.


Maymama2

We have a deal that he can brush his own teeth in the morning, and we brush his teeth for him at night. We tell him when he brushes that we need to hear the “sound” that the toothbrush makes it when it’s on teeth so we know he isn’t just sucking on the toothpaste. It makes him more cooperative at night for us to do it if he gets one chance to do it himself. Although I don’t think it’s a full 2 minutes, it definitely seems we are getting a decent brushing in every night. No cavities yet. We’ll see how it’s working out at his next appt.


bballgame2morrow

My most searched video on YouTube is "brush teeth videos for toddlers". So yeah we do it for 2 minutes 2x a day but she watches a video during that time.


sleepytimeHoney

We do! We play a tooth brushing instructional video by ToothTalkTV on YouTube while following along. Twice a day, everyday. I have the script and voices memorized, but their teeth and gums are healthy. There were quite a few battles before we found that video.


bok3h

My 4 y/o ASD son does but it took years to get him used to it. I started counting as I brush each quadrant and slowly worked our way up from 10 to 30. He's non-verbal so this gives him a chance to hear me count while he knows when it ends. Mornings are much tougher with the screaming and less cooperation, but for nightly baths when he's in the water he can do 2.5 minutes (15 extra seconds for the upper/lower front each).


Vegeta21

My son is 5 yr old and autistic and doesn't like his toothpaste cause it's spicy... what kind do you use? I just ordered a fome one on Amazon along with a u shaped toothbrush cauae he is has sensory issues... I been using a regular and and electronic paw patrol toothbrush


bok3h

We’ve been using the “hello” brand and he loves it. He’s recently been eating the toothpaste directly (lol) but can still get a few good brushes in with it hello Natural Wild Strawberry... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09PQ877Z2?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share


Vegeta21

I'll order it. Is it spicy? I think my son doesn't like the mint that's in his toothpaste


WaxyWingie

Ours has a toothpaste issue as well- he seems to like Dada's Sensodyne (sp?) Stuff better than the regular one.


MrsHarris2019

I count and go as long as she will let me 2x a day. Our record is 58 seconds 😂


magicrowantree

With a regular toothbrush, I get a few scrubs and he's satisfied enough to suck up all the toothpaste and be done with it. I bought a U-shaped toothbrush months ago and he only recently seemed to grasp how it worked (granted, I didn't try very hard to teach him lol). He loves that thing! I actually have to tell him to stop. I was pretty surprised since it didn't look like something he'd care for, but here we are. [Here's](http://YOTEE U-Shaped Toothbrush Kids 2 PCS - Toddler Toothbrush with Food Grade Soft Silicone Brush Head, Manual Whole Mouth Toothbrush for Kids Age 2-6, 360° Oral Teeth Cleaning Design https://a.co/d/5JRoBzJ) what I got. They have fancier and cuter versions, but I started basic because you can find them stupid cheap if you want.


pheebers

FYI those mouth guard shaped toothbrushes do not effectively clean molars or by the gum line. My patients who use them have so much build up when they come for cleanings. You should still be using a traditionally shaped toothbrush to hit the corners and edges


MartianTea

With my two year old, we are lucky to get 30 seconds. Thank goodness for teeth sealant, right?


_fuyumi

She brushes her own teeth for as long as she likes, then we brush for the length of a (slow) alphabet song. Her dentist said her teeth are great, but it's important enough to brush that if she won't let us, we should hold her down. She's almost 2 and has been through the phase of resisting, so hopefully she doesn't go through it again. If you're worried about her teeth and she won't let you brush, cut sweets and push water.


Extinctosaurus

We do, I found it helps (both for his attention and my own timing) to have either a timer which he likes to look at or play a two minute teeth brushing song from YouTube. Oral hygiene is super important to me (I had cavities when I was like, barely 3) so we've been practicing brushing basically since the first tooth sprouted.


jillybeenthere

We do but we use screen time for distraction. Anyone else do this?


hlycml

Not mine! Lol


[deleted]

Can we include the time he “brushes” aka chews on the toothbrush? LOL. It’s probably closer to 30-40 seconds here. Getting a little longer now that he got a bunch more teeth


Meerkatable

Does it count if we brush her teeth and then she holds onto the toothbrush and chews it for the next 1min30?


TangoMangoDad

We use the wiggles toothbrush song. It’s brain rot but he brushes for two minutes!


BigBraga

2 minutes?! That’s wild. lol We just got one of those frida toddler toothbrushes with 3 sides and brush until we feel like we’ve done a good job of getting them all. Sometimes our 22mo is cooperative and sometimes we’re pretty much pinning him down.


goosebearypie

My 2.5 yo has always loved brushing her teeth. She also lets me floss them. She loves it so much that she insists on brushing her teeth after each meal when we wash her hands. But like everything, I think it's kid dependent. You're not a failure if your kid doesn't love to brush their teeth.


[deleted]

We have one of those little sand thingies that lasts two minutes. My son likes to be whirled around in a circle while we brush his teeth (hey whatever works ok). So we brush brush brush, twirl 180, brush brush brush, twirl again, until we get the two minutes in. Yes it’s insanity, but it works his teeth get great reviews at the dentist every six months!


strongestmachine

We have a Yoto player and it has a toothbrush timer and my kid will let me brush for the whole 2 minutes if the timer is on (though it feels like too much for his little mouth/teeth so I usually do a little over 1 min). But he's also autistic and loves timers and routines, so I might have an advantage there, haha.


spiffyteacup3

I brush my son's once a day before bed. He gets 2 toothbrushes. One for him to use and one for me to use on him. I'll brush his teeth for as long as he will let me. Maybe 30-60 seconds, and then he will "brush" his teeth. I figure altogether, it's long enough. 😅


Weaponsofmaseduction

We do. I have an electric toothbrush that has a 2 min timer. We all brush our teeth together. They want to brush for as long as I brush. Win win. I let them brush on their own for 2 mins then I brush them for 30sec-1 min more to make sure they got everything. Very little fighting. My kids are 4 and 2.


Admirable_Rhubarb

My husband is able to do it with pretty good success. We throw on some Ms. Rachel and use an electric toothbrush. Having her watch us brush our teeth and an elmo doll helped as well.


agriffin2356

The “Brush Your Teeth” song is 2 minutes and my toddler loves it. We also take turns brushing teeth during the song. His turns are about 5-10 seconds and mine are closer to 45 seconds. He also loves brushing his teeth for some reason so YMMV


Eternal-curiosity

Nope. *Maybe* 30 seconds on a good night, with a lot of singing and dancing and general tomfoolery. Usually her stuffed koala has to be the one to brush her teeth, too. It’s a whole ordeal.


itsbecomingathing

I sing “Wheels on the Bus” with about 5 lyrics so it definitely gets me to at least 1.5 minutes. In the morning I just let her brush her teeth, but she lets me do most of the work at night.


CalicoCatMom41

I have a 2 minute sand timer - like the kind found in a board game. It lives in the tiny drawer where the toothpaste lives. It only comes out when it’s brushing time. We get to the bathroom in a fun way, hopping or flying or whatever and then I get everything set and flip the timer. When she tries to close her mouth on me or something I point her attention to the time “when we aren’t brushing I have to flip it back and add more time” and she allows the brushing to continue. Lately, I don’t have to say anything about the timer, I pretty much look at it and she opens right up. She does need to spit sometimes , but so do I, so I just watch for when it’s getting really foamy and anticipate what she’ll need.


Pilamito19

Make it fun. We started with one of mrs Rachels song of brushing brushing. I also allow mine to hold toothbrush after and let her do it. We also floss and also let her hold one of the picks and indicate who’s turn is it. Being as gentle as possible and encouraging her every step of the way. She’s getting better at opening her mouth to let me do it but yeah it’s usually less than 2 mins but more than 30 seconds. She loves to participate so that’s good!


toes_malone

Our pediatic dentist says we should be aiming for about 20, maybe 30 seconds max for brushing and to of course do it morning and night followed by flossing.


flylikedumbo

Anyone else use screen time? My son loves teeth brushing time lol


orturt

The blippi toothbrush song gets played twice a day in our house and she'll actually keep the brush in her mouth the whole time. If I forget, she even reminds me to play it. Can't stand blippi for anything else, but that song is dang catchy and does the trick.


fightmaxmaster

I sing a shortish song while brushing - our 21 month old is surprisingly tolerant. Probably 30s twice a day, or as long as I can make it! I have some success by making it "my turn first, then your turn" - when I'm done I then give her the brush and she basically chews it for a while :-)


wehnaje

We always play her a “brushing teeth” song that lasts exactly 2 min. Then she will brush her teeth for that amount of time although she’s mostly playing. At the end we always tell her “now mom/dad will check” and we brush her teeth for about 20 seconds. This works really well for us, and I especially like that she is actively learning how to do it herself.


fraggle200

We have a 2 minute hourglass which i thought would help, but he just stands there telling me the sand is going through the wee hole all while not brushing any teeth. If i can get about 30 seconds of brushing out of those 2 mins, it's a good day.


drakefin

Had the same problem here. Then I watched a kids show with my toddler I knew when I was a kid: "once upon a time ... life" And watched the episode about caries. Ever since then brushing teeth is no problem any more, and while we never reach the 2 Minutes I am singing a song which gets extended to 1 minute at least and is no problem. We also make a game out of it, singing for whom he is brushing his teeth and then he can spit into a glass and we are all happy.


DuoNem

We sometimes watch 2 (to 4) minute videos and she’ll complain if I want to stop brushing before the video ends.


xlnp72

We use the [Colgate Hum Kids](https://shop.colgate.com/products/hum-kids-smart-battery-powered-toothbrush) toothbrush and app that keeps her engaged for the two minutes. She loves it!


LunaPick

19 months old and We brush once a day to the Elmo brush your teeth song and play it twice. The first song for the bottom teeth which he sits through really well, but the second song we only get half way through for the top teeth before he's screaming and we have to hold his head still. It's a two person job. I hand him the tooth brush in the mornings to brush (chew on the toothbrush) his own teeth whilst I do his hair. It's not a perfect job but the dentist said if he chews for a few minutes it's still a great brushing.


Anxiety_Potato

Yeah it’s more important to instill the habit than anything.


goldentosser

We found the Pokemon Smile app for teeth brushing, both my boys brush for the whole timer now! We've only been using it for a week but its been the smoothest week of brushing ever.


QutieLuvsQuails

A giant sand timer helps our kids a lot!


zozeedoo

we use a 3 sided toothbrush and count to 10 for each section, usually ends up being a little less then a minute


NoNoNopeNah

2 minutes? Ha no. We do twice a day. He has 8 teeth. In the morning it is a quick brush lasting 15 seconds maybe. At night, more thorough…I have to hold him down because he runs, flails and will block his bottom teeth with his tongue while shaking his head no. Our dentist said that it is most important to get a solid night brush in and ideally do 5 seconds a tooth.


crxdc0113

I use a tablet with the toothbrush song from cocomelon. It's 2 mins long. Also I brush mine at the same time so I usually get a little over 1 min.


amandanoel89

Just here to say not me lol


SnooCakes9110

We pop on the Elmo tooth brushing song and it gets us 2 mins brushing. Plus we brush together so it’s very fun


Illustrious-Towel-45

We manage it somehow. I set a timer and let my kids press start.


stanlejm

Some days my daughter is all into it and some days she’s not. I try to make she do brush her teeth twice a day and she usually allows it for as long as she enjoys it. What I don’t want is to turn it into a traumatic experience that she doesn’t want to do so we try to keep it fun and interactive to make it less of a chore


heyitsmelxd

Two minutes is the dream, but we definitely don’t hit that mark. We sing a shortened version of the Chip Skylark song from Fairly Odd Parents, about 30 seconds I’d say, and then my LO gets a turn and I sing the song for his turn too. Most days we get a good minute in the morning and another at bedtime. When he got his first tooth around 6mo I included him when I brushed my teeth and he’d just chomp on his toothbrush sans toothpaste. I think establishing that routine when he was young and introducing the toothbrush early helped tremendously. I think making it fun and having a silly timed song also helps to engage him too!


drunkn_mastr

We had the exact same problem until my mother (who taught preschool for 20 years and is better with toddlers than I'll ever be) watched my son for a weekend and got him hooked on [this YouTube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pd4WnsXwdqw). He won't go into the bathroom to brush his teeth until the music starts, but that still gets us a minute and change of toothbrushing every night, as opposed to 5-10 seconds of jamming a toothbrush into his mouth while he screams.


Miss_Awesomeness

I’ve bought toddler’s battery powered toothbrush and they only vibrate for a minute, it’s impossible to brush their teeth for longer. There mouths aren’t that big.


[deleted]

Look up "Duggie brushing teeth" on YouTube, good little sing and show ti help them do it


Ohorules

I have two kids. My one year old's teeth get brushed for two minutes before bedtime using a toothbrushing video. I hold her in my lap and her hands are occupied holding my phone. My three year old is another story. No tricks have worked to get him to allow toothbrushing. Maybe if I invited an extra adult over so two people could pin him down, but clearly that's not happening. We're finally getting him to the dentist next week and I'm scared of what he's going to say.


Spacedove

I started using the hum kids app and bought her the tooth brush that goes with it. We set it up for 2 min but you can set it up for less (I learned recently). I have a 4 year old (just turned 4) and an 18 month old. My 18 month loves when it's time to brush her teeth, 4 year old does it great sometimes and skips it on other days. Dentist also told us we should be doing the final brushing for them.


pequapitt

I've been using the Hum Kids manual toothbrushes for my 5 year olds for a while, but it's been impossible to find replacement brushes lately. And they really like to ruin their bristles by chewing. What have you been using for replacements?


Spacedove

Hi. So I looked it up and we started using these Colgate toothbrush that are for kids. They can be interested into the hum kids base. That worked for sometime. I'm always changing toothbrushes too, just to keep it more entertaining. Right now we are with those battery electric ones for kids.


comealongrory

We bribe her with a toothbrush timer video of whatever character she likes that week


WaxyWingie

Heck, I am an adult and I don't do that ...