Common Parenting Challenge: It’s Not Just Your Kid Who's Not Into Brushing Their Teeth

One of the essential life skills that every child needs to learn from an early age to safeguard their long-term dental hygiene and health is brushing teeth. However, young children often find brushing teeth a chore. For most parents, supervising and assisting young children to get in the habit of brushing teeth once or twice a day for two minutes are certainly no small feat. This effort may involve quite a bit of coaxing, creativity, and possibly, occasional yelling too. A Common Struggle for Parents Photo Credit: Dentistry Online UK As a mother of two, getting and encouraging my children to brush their teeth properly and regularly are challenging at times. My firstborn has not much problem with brushing her teeth regularly and independently since she was a toddler but sometimes, she does need a reminder from Mum or Dad to brush her teeth before going to bed at night. Thanks to her cooperation, to date she has no major dental issues and recently, her dentist happily declared that her teeth are healthy with zero cavities. In contrast, when my husband and I introduced tooth-brushing routines to our youngest child, we met resistance from our son. At first, he did not really enjoy doing it; he frequently gagged when we tried to gently brush his teeth with a tiny pea-sized of toothpaste and refused to go to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Since young children, in general, have no patience to brush their teeth with adequate amounts of time, it was really difficult to appropriately clean our son’s teeth as he tended to rush the process by fussing or making lots of noises during brushing. My husband and I tried really hard to add tooth-brushing routine – at least once a day, before bedtime, into our son’s daily schedule. Regrettably, there were times when we were just too flat tired or simply failed miserably to win the tooth-brushing battle with our boy. As a result, our son had early childhood dental caries, cavities, and tooth pain, which eventually led him to two dentist visits. After this incident, my husband and I became extra vigilant in ensuring our son’s dental hygiene and found ways to make brushing teeth more fun to him to ensure the boy brushes his teeth every single day, particularly at night and after he eats sugary food. Caring Our Child’s Teeth Hygiene Early: When to Begin and the Benefits Did you know that good dental care begins before a baby's first tooth appears? Just because we cannot see the teeth, it does not mean they are not there. Baby teeth help children to eat and speak, and guide the permanent adult teeth into position, so it is important to take care of them right from the start. Before our baby starts teething, we can start cleaning our baby gums by running a clean soft damp cloth on his or her gums to clear away any harmful bacteria and promote good oral health. When our baby’s first tooth emerges, usually at around 6 months of age, we can start brushing his or her tooth using an infant soft brush with water after feeding. Poor dental hygiene due to failure in maintaining teeth cleanliness may lead to difficulty in chewing. Thus, poor food digestion. It may also cause permanent teeth damage, bad breath, tartar, plaque buildup, sore throat, and even speaking and pronunciation difficulties. As such, it is vital to start regular tooth brushing young because by establishing a dental care routine early, we can instill the habit of tooth brushing with less resistance, avoid future cavities, and prevent complex teeth gaps, as well as other dental health problems as the child gets older. As we know, all the above may hurt the parents’ pockets as dental treatments are typically not cheap. So, start a good brushing routine early, mums! How to Get Your Little Ones to Brush Their Teeth without Struggle As a parent who has previously handled a young child with resistance to tooth-brushing routine, did not brush his teeth often enough, and ultimately, suffered from childhood dental problems, here are some practical suggestions from me that you can consider to encourage your child to brush his pearly whites more regularly and successfully. 1. Lead by Example As the saying goes: "Monkey see, monkey do." Children like to copy others, so demonstrate the correct way to brush your teeth to your little ones every day and convince them to do the same. You can also ask other family members, such as the older sibling, to show him how the older brother or sister brushes his or her teeth and do it together, if possible. 2. Make the 2 Minutes Fun When you brush, do not rush. Ensure your child brushes his or her every tooth and take at least 2 minutes to brush your child’s teeth thoroughly. Sing a song, make up a story, do simple counting games, or even create a friendly competition during these 2 minutes to make the brushing process enticing. My husband teaches and asks our son to count 1 to 10 as he brushes his front, back, and chewing surface of all teeth before the boy can rinse his mouth. So far this method works wonders! 3. Set and Stick to a Good Routine It takes persistence and patience for young children to accept tooth brushing. Consistency is key in making brushing habits more attainable. Every morning and every evening before bed, prompt your child to brush his teeth. Do not be tempted to let your child skip brushing teeth after a long day or during holiday – just keep the routines up. After a while, your child will get accustomed to the timing of this habit and automatically, think about brushing teeth at those “fixed” times on his own. 4. Reward Your Child Praise and encouragement go a long way. Offer small non-monetary rewards to your children for successfully brushing their teeth, especially when you are still trying to establish this healthy habit. Find out the thing that motivates your child to progress. The rewards can be as simple as singing praises, such as saying, “Good job, boy!” or “Two thumbs up for you, son!”, giving stickers, or presenting him with an option to pick his favourite book for bedtime story after he finishes brushing. 5. Pick Colourful Toothbrush Designs Photo Credit: Jordan Giving children colourful toothbrush designs they prefer to use is one way to get kids more enthusiastic and excited about brushing their teeth regularly. Hand to them their own pediatric toothbrush that features their favourite colour or character or even the toothpaste flavour they fancy, so they have a say in their brushing routine. Remember to change their toothbrush every 3 months too! 6. Choose Jordan! Jordan is a Scandinavian brand that has been caring for people’s teeth since 1927. They set high standards to their craftsmanship – this lies in their Scandinavian nature and spirit. Their sole mission is to enable people to keep their teeth healthy for life. Jordan's range of good quality products are designed to make people’s dental care routine as uncomplicated and encouraging as possible – combining superior functionality with stylish designs. From the first tooth, they have tailor-made products – made for your individual needs, preferences and dental habits. As such, you can always find a perfect match for you and your family. Jordan Steps toothbrush series has won various awards namely Red Dot Design Award and Norwegian Design Council/Prize. Introducing Jordan’s Steps Toothbrushes for Kids Your child's first teeth require special care and children have different needs as they grow older. That is why Jordan’s range of toothbrushes for kids, made for every smile, is designed with different features to make brushing easy and effective at every age. The handle, head size, bristles, and design are all tailor made to help you establish good dental care habits from the first tooth. Choose the one that fits your child. Jordan Step 0–2 Years Photo Credit: Jordan Jordan Step 1 toothbrush is tailor-made to make the first brushing experience a good one. It is designed with extra soft bristles, a soft biting ring for your babies’ gums, and a handle that suits adults and babies' hands. Jordan Step 3–5 Years Photo Credit: Jordan Jordan Step 2 toothbrush is designed to brush children’s smaller milk teeth. It features soft bristles, a small but wide head, and a dual handle for both parents and kids – makes brushing easier. The blue bristles on the toothbrush are there to help you put the right amount of toothpaste on each time. Jordan Step 6–9 Years Photo Credit: Jordan Jordan Step 3 toothbrush is specially created to brush the mix of milk and permanent teeth that children between the ages of 6 and 9 have. Designed with soft bristles and a special tip, with pyramid-shaped bristles, it is perfect to clean all the different shapes and sizes of this age’s teeth. Brushing Teeth with Jordan’s Steps Toothbrush and Toothpaste Series Want to make brushing fun from the get go? When selecting a toothbrush and toothpaste for your kids, make sure you choose the one that fits your kids, designed for kids, and trusted by parents like the Jordan Steps Series! Top 10 reasons why you should choose Jordan Steps Series for your kids: Award-winning designs The expert in kids' oral care Made with purpose and caring for teeth Unique designs to suit different age groups Effective cleaning Nice designs and colours to motivate kids to brush Designed for kids and approved by parents Gentle formulation: 0% SLS for tiny teeth Complete with recommended fluoride level to protect teeth Taste loved by both parents and kids An Even Better Reason: One-Stop Online Shopping for Jordan Steps Products From today onwards, you can get all Jordan Step products at Jordan's Official Brand Page on Motherhood.com.my. Let your little one sing and brush along with Jordan's Brush Time for Kids App. Download the app now on Google Play Store or App Store so you can participate in an interesting reward program for kids to brush their teeth. For more information about the Jordan Steps Series, visit Jordan Malaysia's official website, Facebook & Instagram pages to stay updated! What Other Mums Are Saying About The Jordan Steps Series Watch the video to learn more about how to resolve challenges in brushing your baby’s and toddler’s teeth with the Jordan Steps Series! https://youtu.be/mmJrZcCVK_Q

Family Planning by

Family Fun By Sunway Malls

Motherhood Panel of Experts

More Stories

Women Empowerment: 6 Influential Malaysian Mums Share Inspiring Tips