6 TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR CHILD TO BRUSH THEIR TEETH! Written By: Dr. Ankita Shah, April 2019
You would be surprised to know that in a developing country like India, 70-80% of kids aged 2-5 yrs suffer from a disease called as Early Childhood Caries.Hence to ensure an optimal oral health environment, one should initiate oral care right from infancy .
It may sound confusing when I say that your baby’s oral care must start right from infancy, even when they have no teeth. Although eruption of milk teeth starts 6 months onwards, baby feeds including mother’s milk, bottled milk and other infant formulas lead to a caries conducive environment for these teeth. This mainly occurs due to neglect on the parent’s part to rinse or clean their mouth on a timely basis and a child’s inability to gargle his/her own mouth.
Brushing your child’s teeth can be a challenging task. Have a look at these 6 tips to simplify brushing and make it a fun activity.
#1 ROLE PLAY:
You can demonstrate tooth brushing on a stuffed toy or your child’s favorite toy and then let the child perform the action. Children have the fear of unknown. This Tell Show Do technique will ease the child’s fears and make him/her more acceptable towards brushing.
#2 FAMILY ACTIVITY:
You could make brushing a family activity where you, your husband and child brush their teeth together. This way it becomes a fun activity and instills the importance of oral hygiene for all members of the house.
#3 VIDEOS AND MUSIC:
Play a few tooth brushing videos and music to positively motivate the child. There are a plenty on YouTube .
#4 BATHING AND TOOTH BRUSHING:
Let your child brush their favorite water toys while bathing. You could then distract them and make use of music or a poetry to get them to brush their teeth.
#5 TAKING TURNS:
Take turns to brush eg: its Mumma’s turn to brush Baby’s teeth and vice-a-versa now Baby will brush Mumma’s teeth.
#6 BEST SMILE GAME:
Play a game of who has the best smile and positively reinforce once brushing is accomplished.
Some kids are orally hypersensitive and don’t even like you touching his/her mouth. Slowly try and increase the tolerance of the vibrating tooth brush. Use firm pressure while brushing teeth, gums or tongue. The brushing activity can be broken down into smaller steps such that the child can tolerate it.
Brushing for special children: It’s an uphill battle for any parent to get a child to brush his/her teeth. For parents with special needs children , this is particularly true because of the oral motor issues and oral sensitivities. One can use toothbrushes adapted with a Play-doh grip, a bicycle grip or even a pediatric dentist can customize the grip as comfortable for your child. There are specialized 3 sided brushes from Den-Trust to aid special children for easier tooth brushing. You can also make use of an electric toothbrush.
Follow these guidelines for a healthy smile. Brush your teeth and crush those cavities!
Please feel free to ask me any questions. Contact Us
Keywords : Toothbrushing, tips, children, special children, orally hypersensitive
Note : This article was written and published by Dr. Ankita Shah for WorldOfMoms.