Flossing & Brushing

We switched our kids from brushing once a day to twice a day when they turned 3, and that's when I started flossing their teeth too. Our dentist suggested trying to floss their teeth twice a week at this age. The plastic sticks with dental floss on it work great, and I tell them I'm putting string in between their teeth. I just sit on the couch, and have them put their head in my lap.

I was told to floss when the teeth are touching (or nearly so). Hope that helps!
J.

Our dentist wasn't concerned about flossing for our son at 18 months because of the amount of space between his baby teeth - food comes out easily with brushing. Now at 2 1/2, she wants him to "brush" his teeth twice a day (sucking is fine). She wants me to brush his teeth once a day - just a wet toothbrush is fine.

I don't remember how young our kids were when we started with flossing and brushing, but regardless of how much space is between the teeth, we figure it really doesn't hurt to get them used to the routine. We have 3 - ages 6,4, and 2 - and they all are very good about standing still while we do the flossing and brushing. (Sometimes the 2-year-old has a bit of a tough time with cooperating, but he knows he has to let us do it.) We don't do any sort of distraction or anything, just talk with them a bit, and they each get 3 minutes of individual attention, so it works out pretty well.

you have already started them on brushing. my son's dentist told us that just letting our son sucking on toothbrush has start the routine. slowly add toothpaste but becareful of any toothpaste with flouide... not good for children. and then show them how to brush up and down on the front teeth!!

You can buy little kids' flossers--they are in fun shapes like dinosaurs, with handles and the floss is strung between its jaws. Very easy to grip and use, and the kids love them. My dentist recommended that in the beginning you lie them across your lap while their watching a show, and they are distracted enough to not be bothered. My boys tolerate it well enough in the bathroom, because the novelty of getting icky stuff from between their teeth is entertainment enough. :)

Toothpaste isn't necessary until age 3. You can just use a wet toothbrush and should always begin brushing at least twice a day once the first tooth comes in. If you start the habit early enough it just becomes routine and not a struggle. Try to sing a song or make a game out of it if they won't let you brush. It is really important to help them brush until around age 7 or 8. Once they can write cursive, they have enough manual dexterity to brush their own teeth, but not until that point. You only need to worry about flossing once the teeth touch.

My daughter got a musicical tooh brush for christmas- She loves it And goes right in to brush her teeth before bedtime-This could help

My dentist had a great idea for flossing their teeth, something I hadn't thought of...have them lay down with their heads on a pillow in your lap. And then when you do it they are more relaxed and it is easier to do as well. This also helps prepare them for the dentist visits.