Tips to encourage children to clean their teeth

Every parent knows the importance of a good routine for their child when cleaning their teeth but the practicalities of doing this can often be difficult. Children can be stubborn and awkward when it comes to having their teeth cleaned so sometimes you need to think outside of the box to encourage them to do so.

Here are a few tips that you might find useful:

1. Cleaning your teeth at the same time as your child is often a good approach. Children love to emulate grownups so if you are able to establish a routine where you clean your teeth at the same time, there’s a good chance that your child will want to copy you.

2. Use brightly coloured toothbrushes and toothpaste that is specially designed for children. Children respond better to fun and vibrant colours and are more likely to want to use them.

3. Establish a routine with your child and keep to it. For example, a routine might be something like bath, pyjamas, clean teeth and then bedtime story. The more you can establish this routine, your child will get used to cleaning their teeth as part of the process.

4. Give your child a sense of independence by letting them have their own brush to start cleaning with and then you can finish the job. You can make this into a game and set a time limit for them to clean their teeth before you help them. The more fun you can inject into the process the less of a chore it will be.

Perseverance is the key when brushing your children’s teeth so by making the process fun, interactive and as part of a normal routine, you can encourage your children to get into good teeth cleaning habits.

For more advice about oral health then please contact Bhandal Dental Practice. We would be happy to help.