How to get your kids to brush their teeth
For kids, brushing teeth is easier said than done, and on most occasions, parents struggle to get their little ones to adjust to this.
Here are a few tricks and tips to help you navigate through this and come out of it with children with clean teeth:
Choose flavored toothpaste and animated toothbrushes
Allow your child to select an electric toothbrush with their favorite cartoon characters embalmed. Specially, these are produced for the small, growing mouths and can look a little more like a toy than an oral hygiene tool for a kid.
Adult toothpaste does not look appealing to your children, and they have the ‘zing effect’ that does not attract children. As a result, choose toothpaste depending on the flavour and colour to try to find the best one. Even though dentists say that children don’t need to clean their teeth using toothpaste, they will eagerly want to cooperate if they like the flavor. The most popular flavours are sparkle mint, strawberry, and bubble gum flavors.
Your children will feel empowered if they have choices and decide on what type of toothpaste and flavor they want.
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Make it fun
Children love games and are most excited about carrying out activities that bond with others, more so their parents. Unfortunately, children link cleaning their teeth to bedtime, and bedtime is taboo when it comes to little children! Sometimes, making the kids brush their teeth is difficult, and what works today might be a disaster tomorrow.
Find ways to spice it up; play along with them as all of you brush your teeth. Sit on the floor and imitate each other or play games like Copy Cat, which can grab your children’s attention. Another trick is to play their favorite song or sing it for them to dance to as they brush their teeth.
You can also clean their teeth before they change into their pajamas, or get into the shower. As much as you can, try to dissociate bedtime and teeth cleaning.
Commend them
Commend your children’s brushing. Using positive reinforcement will help create a lifelong dental maintenance routine. You can create a sticker chart whereby you give your children stars according to how they floss once a day and brush their teeth twice a day.
Model good behaviour
Coordinate your schedule with that of your children so that you can brush your teeth together. Making sure that they have healthy teeth should be a priority. If the children see you doing something, they will want to do it too. Lead by example. During cleaning, you can take the opportunity to show them how to clean their teeth properly.
Remember…
Employing all these techniques ensures that your children’s teeth cleaning routine is fun and involving. Therefore, the children will master the art of oral hygiene faster and do it daily.
