How do you make an 18 month old child to brush his teeth?

Hi I had the same problem with my daughter and she gave me a hard time. I literally had to run after her to get her to brush her teeth. What really worked for me may work for you as well. Try this toothpaste called "Grins and Giggles" by Gerber. It is an infant tooth and gum cleanser which can be swallowed without any harm to the infant. It has a nice taste and for the first couple of days my daughter simply used to swallow it up, now she lets me brush her teeth with it. She still can't spit it out but lets me rinse her mouth for whatever comes out of it. I also got a small infant gum and tooth massager with the same toothpaste, it can be worn in an adult finger and that way you can put your finger inside the baby's mouth and brush her teeth. Hope this helps.

You should use the specially designed toothpaste for him. It gets him into the habit of brushing his teeth and tastes good too. I have 4 kids and that how they all started out at an early age. They eventually volunteered to do their own teeth. But I always supervised them to make sure they weren't just filling the toothbrush with toothpaste.

I use special toothpaste cause the regular has flouride in it which is harmful if swallowed. My daughter is pretty good about it, even doing by herself. Sometimes she doesn't want to but my husband will hold her and then I will brush for her. So maybe try to get someone to hold his arms or occupy him while you brush his teeth.

well i faced the problem myself..then i took my son to the supermarket and asked him to pick his own tooth brush and paste.and he did it with lot of intrest and the next day even before i got up he was all ready to try his coice.then later as the enthusiansm vaded i bribed him with his fav. drink which would be given only after he brushes his teeth..then after some time even that failed i started telling everybody in the home and his friends that he doesn't brush his teeth and is a bad boy--u guys don't play with himm and all stuff...then he realised that he shud brush daily and followed the routine.

Hi, I feel that you don't have to worry about this now. Your son is very small and some kids take time to learn. I brush my son's teeth myself. If I give the brush in his hand, he will keep playing with it or will just swallow the paste and keep asking for more paste. So, I do it for him. It is really not a problem and they will learn everything gradually. Never compare kids. Each and every children has their own capacity and will grow that way. Take care.

My 13 month old daughter pretty much brushes her own teeth. I gave her a toothbrush when she was about 7 months old. She likes being able to do it herself. She does not want me to help her at all. Little Miss Independent!

Yes i think u should use the milk toothpaste that is available for young children. My son is 2 yrs and 2 months old i still have problems with brushing his teeth. I am usually holding on to him to watch me brush my teeth then sometimes he lets me do his teeth. I brush his teeth infront of our bathroom mirror and he usualy pulls faces at himself that when i start to brush his teeth. I use a baby's toothbrush and the baby's toothpaste. sometimes he takes the toothbrush off me and starts to do it himself.

My health visitor told me I could use adult toothpaste on my nine month old baby's four teeth! I didn't agree with this an bought a children's toothpaste with a minty taste. My baby son hated this and so I got some of the babies toothpaste that I saw in an expensive natural baby shop. It is orange flavor and but he still fights against having his teeth cleaned. I will buy a soft toothbrush for him to play with and I will brush gently without any toothpaste to get him more confidence. I think you should try getting a toothpaste for toddlers and you might like to try making teeth cleaning a game. He might cooperate if you brush your teeth in front of him. Good luck.

My baby is 22 months old... and has a complete set of front teeth... my husband bought her this princess toothbrush and i sister gave her a toothpaste that she can swallow... we give her the toothbrush with tooth paste and she plays with it in her mouth... she would immitate how we brush our teeth... the from time to time we get it from her... and brush her teeth and tongue... this is quite a long process... but at least we get her teeth clean...

I always show my children when I do brush my teeth, and they learned from that. So for me, it was not really difficult to ask them to ask their teeth. Just give them the normal tooth paste, since I don't want them to use the special tooth paste for the children which has flavor on it. So far, it work well.