Brushing your teeth. It’s an important task everyone has to do to keep their oral health in check but for some reason, to kids, it’s a nightmare. Whether it be an ineffective swipe or two of the brush, a tantrum or a long bargaining process, often getting your child to brush for two minutes can feel like an impossible task.
RELATED: Top tips for getting ready with a toddler
RELATED: All the celebrity babies born in 2018
But there are things you can do to help. Here are five ways for you to help encourage your kids to brush their teeth…
#1 Find a fun toothbrush
A fun toothbrush can make a world of difference when it comes to encouraging your child to brush their teeth. Try using the light-up CareDent Starlite kidsbrush which also helps kids time their brushing, the Colgate Minions Kids Toothbrush, or the Oral-B Stages brushes which suit a range of ages and come in cute cartoon characters.
And don’t forget about the toothpaste! beautyheaven loves the Colgate My First Mild Mint Gel Toothpaste and Jason Strawberry Kids Toothpaste.
#2 Bring music into the mix
Music is a marvellous way to make brushing more fun for kids. Not only can it serve as a great reminder to reinforce the daily habit, but brushing to the beat can make the two minutes more enjoyable so they fly past. One quick Youtube or app search and you’ll have plenty of teeth-brushing tunes at your fingertips!
#3 Set an example
Children watch you. So make sure you walk the walk when it comes to your own oral hygiene habits. If you can brush your teeth together, try doing that! Mimicking you might make it more fun for them and hopefully improve their technique if they do as you do.
Need to update your own oral hygiene products? beautyheaven loves the Oral-B Precision Gum Care Toothbrush, Colgate Total® Advanced Whitening Toothpaste, CareDent EeziFlossers and LISTERINE® Tartar Control.
#4 Implement an incentive
Sometimes all you need is a good reward to reinforce good habits and behaviours. Try setting up a brushing chart with stickers and offer a prize for when your child reaches a certain amount of stickers.
#5 Make it a game
Kids love to play. Turn teeth time into play time by creating a fun imaginary story, seeing who can create the most bubbles from brushing or pretending to destroy ‘sugar monsters’ that attack your teeth. Whatever the game, it’s likely to help pass the time until the two-minute mark. Just make sure they’re still actually getting every spot!
How did you encourage your kids to brush their teeth? Did you try any of these tactics?
Reported spam below – 3 count.
BhH, please remove.
All really great tips!! Will need to implement a sticker and reward system.
I can’t believe a spammer responded to my comment reporting to spam!