Hygiene Habits for kids

Your daughter being a big girl she should understand the way of being hygenic and its uses as she is aschooling girl as,however it depends on the parenting and for this i think your husband does not has been taken good care in making her learn all this,so you do one thing tell her the truth,what happens if she does not brush her teeth properly,her teeth get spoiled and she starts smelling very badly and all her friends at school will not talk to her because of her bad breath and even how the teeth and cavities get damage with germs and how they fall down leaving a big pain. I think this is the only way,all the best.

well, I don't have kids of my own so I'm afraid I'm not going to be of much help. Perhaps get a friend her age to share that they do these things too? sometimes friends are more influential than parents...

I think her father might not have observed her so closely as you are doing and it looks like she has not got training to do these jobs. Children have to be repeatedly told a thing before they learn it and follow the same to form it as a habit. You could start with brushing your teeth with her and showing her how to do it. Add some fun to the activity. Let it not be an order. Do it with her as a friend to her. And slowly she would start following your way. May be the soap hurts, so she does not want to take bath. Again, affectionately you can help her overcome all her resistances and fears.

Wow, i guess Dads do thing differently! With the teeth thing, i think the best thing you can tell her is the truth, tell her if she doesn't start brushing her teeth properly then they will turn black & fall out - also let her know that other people might make fun of her this might get her to want to do it as i doubt she'll want people making fun of her. As for the washing thing, just be truthful there as well, tell her she will start to get smelly (or that she is smelly if that's the case) & that she wont have any friends if she doesn't start washing properly. I think 8 is definitely old enough to understand so try being honest coz the honest truth isn't very nice & she needs to know that! Good Luck!

I can understand her not wanting to wash, some children just don't want to they'd rather play. Don't get me wrong I don't support bad health or hygiene habits. Maybe her dad didn't make her do these things while she was there, you need to instill that she needs to do these things or she won't get to play and have fun. If she doesn't want to wash her hands before eating, don't let her eat. Not to the point that its abusive, just say "Ok, if you don't wash your hands you don't get dinner." Use your own moderation. Just punish her in some way when she doesn't keep herself clean, if she doesn't want to be clean then she cannot have fun. Try that.

my son is only 3, and he hates his hair washed, (i'm assuming it bothers his eyes with the bubbles, and hates water poured over his head, i understand that, i don't even like that!) but he's doing pretty well at brushing his teeth, BUT he's just learning so it's kinda exciting for him to wash himself, brush his own teeth all that. as for an 8 year old, i don't know! i'm scared now!! but i found this website, maybe it can help you??! www.bhg.com/bhg/category.jsp?categoryid=/templatedata/shared/category/data/Safety_KidsHygiene.xml or maybe do a reward type system, create a chart or something. i sometimes don't like these as it feels almost as a bribe, especially with the older ones, BUT maybe for her, if she does something she can watch her fav movie or something. i don't know, i just know rewards can help, but maybe more in the younger ones? keep us posted. i'm curious!

Why a shower why not a bath? Lucky for us our little 6 year old sister loves to shower. At first she didn't but then we told her it was like playing in the rain, now she loves it. And she loves brushing her teeth. I would take her to a dentist and have them tell her what will happen if she doesn't brush properly becuasde sometimes kids listen to others before their parents. Maybe she did wash when she lived with her father. Is she upset becuase she is now living with you? That can be the casue she doesn't want to do anythinf to make you happy so she is not bathing. You could ground her or take something away won't make her happy but maybe she will start bathing. Or if she has a friend talk to them and have them explain it to her that she needs to bath because she is starting to be a bit ripe. Or have her father talk to her. I seriously hope you find a solution to this problem soon. Tell her if she doens't wash her hands before eating she can get worms..lol that is how the doctor got my niece to stop sucking her thumb told her that it gave her worms which it really did but only because I think she handled dogs and didn't wash before plopping it into her mouth. If nothing works you can get a huge bottle of hand sanitizer like my sister did and make them squirt some in their hands afterwards but nothing is as good as soap and water. Have you talked to her father about these habits she has? As I said maybe he can talk to her.

Kids hit different stages where they want to assert their own independance. You are still her parent and whatever it takes to make her clean should be done. She has to know where her boundaries are and this is one boundary that can't be negotiated.

all i can think of is to show her gross pictures of sores and things from medical books that are a result of not cleaning properly and show her some yucky teeth from not brushing. sounds kinda gross but maybe scare tactics will work. also there are some doco's out there that show you under a black light how much urine and faeces are on things from people not washing their hands after going to the bathroom.

Wow I have seen little boys that age be like that but not girls, but i will say if it was my kid I would tell her to wash or be washed and to brush or i will be brushing them for her. I know kids go thru stubborn stages but she needs to learn to do as she is told and that I am the boss and more stubborn than she is.

Hi there, I have 2 children years 11 and 13, I must say I have taught my children well in keeping up with there own personal hygiene. We've watched documentarys and I read books to them when they were younger about "keeping there bodies clean and the importance of brushing there teeth". In there school the new entrants right up to the 10 year olds are educated in health and hygiene too, so that is a great help and extra bonus for parents who really try to teach there kids these good practices. Its become so habitual with them... So I think its a good idea to read some books that show pictures of what happens when you do wash and clean and what happens when you dont wash and clean, sit down with your daughter and show her, maybe these will be of some help... Good luck with this

I know alot of friends who went through this same thing. with the teeth brushing they would stand next to the child and sing the isty bitsy spider or one of her faviorte songs since she is older and tell to keep brushing untill done with the song. The shower part I know some mothers who have gotten in the shower with their child and shows them what to do the others just stand next to them and kinda coach them through it. I hope these help!! Good Luck!!

why don't you bring her in places where hygiene is not a priority and you show her what could become of her if she will not stop her habits.

Cleanliness and good hygeine are learned habits. And, they take lots of practice. My daughter has never gotten into the habit of showers, but loves tub baths. As far as the teeth issue go. Be honest with her. Explain the concept of rotten teeth and the pain that a person feels when they have to go to the dentist to get them fixxed. Sometimes kids respond to visual demonstrations. So, maybe you could find a book at the library about dental health and photos showing teeth suffering from the various gum diseases that result from improper brushing. I guess it's shock therapy. It worked to keep me smoke-free when I was a kid. The fifth grade teacher showed us photos of diseased lungs of smokers, and how healthy lungs looked. And, it was enough to make me never want to smoke. I think you'll find the same response when she sees the pictures of the bad teeth. I am constantly having to remind my own daughter to brush her teeth. Or, to rebrush them. Here's a technique that works for me. I'll ask my daughter to open her mouth so I can see if she has any cavities. And, no matter what I see (good or bad) I shake my head grimly and say, "Looks like you need to brush your teeth some more. Could be getting cavities!" It's not a lie, just preventative medicine. I'm her mom. So, that's my job. It works on a three year old, so it should work on an eight year old too.

i have a 20 month old kid who loves to play in the bath tub but hates the soap and also does not allow water on her head. she doesnt mind brushing though. As I am myself thinking of a solution, and reading from the other posts i too feel that all these suggestions may help you. try inviting some of her friends over for staying the night and make it a fun activity. best of luck.