Baby teeth will all fall out – so that means a cavity or two is not such a big deal, right? Wrong. Children’s baby teeth must remain healthy since they are like ‘placeholders’ for incoming future adult teeth. Here’s how to encourage your little one to brush their teeth.
Brushing tips and tricks
- Watch and learn. Let them watch while you brush and floss your teeth. Brush your tongue and use exaggerated moves to show them how to brush their teeth properly.
- Let them practice on you. Tired of fighting them to open their mouth and let you brush their teeth? Open your own mouth instead and let them practice using a toothbrush on you first. Then tell them it is now their turn.
- Do the boogie-woogie. Play some fun music while you’re brushing your teeth – for at least two minutes. Dance around the bathroom while brushing your teeth. When the music stops, you’re both done.
- Tools of the trade. Get them toothpaste and a toothbrush especially made for kids. They’ll love seeing their favourite character on the toothpaste packaging.
- Show and tell. Ask them to show you how clean their teeth are after getting rid of all the cavity monsters.
- Reward them. Make a reward chart and let them add a sticker every time they brush.
Read more: Fun facts about teeth
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