Toddler son hates having his teeth brushed...update

valk_scot

I agree, there are so many things that affect tooth development. I have a malformation on one of my back molars that my dentist suggested was connected with a childhood illness at the point the tooth was developing, which I found very interesting. Given the areas in my DD's teeth that are streaked though and also that she's been very healthy since the womb days, with only very minor illnesses, dentist is pretty convinced it's down to the soya milk. My DD loved it, she drank a lot of it! I'm just mentioning it because if I'd known I would have been in less of a hurry to go over to adult toothpaste and add yet more fluoride into the mix. A few white blotches are still vastly preferable to rotting teeth due to lack of care though. Hey, and good genes...they've both got my teeth genes, I've only ever had two fillings and I'm in my fifties.

brook2jack

We don't inherit good teeth, we inherit good diet and oral hygiene practices. You've eaten and cleaned well and passed those habits down to the next generation.

On the whole there is no such thing as strong or weak teeth , 95% of all dental treatment is entirely preventable.

sulkisu

brook2jack wrote: »

Well I could tell you that I am, but the problem is you have no way of checking that, other than to see most of my posts are dentally related.

Anything I post or anyone posts on the internet should in no way supersede your own dentists advice.

I hear theyre only baby teeth argument alot. The last baby teeth are lost at age 10 to 12 ish. If they are lost too early the space for adult teeth closes up and causes all sorts of problems. Let alone the fact adult teeth come through at six ish and by then you are leaving it late to change oral hygiene and diet.

There is little more heartbreaking than sending a two year old for a general anaesthetic to have all their teeth removed, other than the fact that two year old is statistically likely to keep on losing teeth all through their life because the changes in diet and oral hygiene probably won't be made.

Understood, thanks. One question though - I know you can't give medical advice - but I just wondered what age do you expect to start seeing children? My dentist has said that there is little point in bringing my son in until he starts school, unless there is a particular problem. I seem to remember that I first went aged 5 (ish), but that was 40 years ago. I can't imagine him sitting still with his mouth open anyway, not just yet. But many baby books and my GP said it is never too erly and that once they have their full set they should definitely be going.

brook2jack

I see children virtually as soon as they are born. I can then give advice before problems start ie about high sugar in soya milk, when and how to brush teeth etc. Parents book their children in at the same time as themselves for check ups.

The area I work in has poor oral health, but in the country as a whole almost 50% of five year olds have filled ,missing or decayed teeth, so for many five is way too late.

As adult teeth start to come through at six , way before then advice about dummies and thumb sucking is also necessary to stop problems.

Obviously children with special needs need particular ,targeted advice as well.

Babies and young children just sit in their push chair or your lap and are easy to examine. The earlier a child goes to the dentist the more relaxed they are and older ones live the balloons and stickers.

NHS advice is children should attend between every three to twelve months depending on their needs.

I would hate anyone with a child to think they don't need to go until they have a problem.

Mrs_Imp

OP, is your son teething? My son is happy to have his teeth brushed (and suck the toothpaste off the bristles) unless he's teething and his gums are sore. Then we can't get near his mouth and we have to hold him still and force it on him (I know that sounds mean, but it's not adversely affected him).
If your son is teething, then he may find it all a bit too painful at the moment.

clairelh

If you have a smartphone/tablet you can get toothbrushing apps - a lot of them are free. They've worked really well in our house - I play along too, the sillier the better, but we've have very few toothbrushing refusals since we've started this - in fact they now all ask for 'the cat' before I even suggest it. I generally let the girls 'brush' their own teeth along to the app and once that's done, they are then happy to let me properly brush them again at the end.

lilymay1

Brook2Jack - Forgive me if this is a ridiculous question, but is dental treatment for children free?

I only ask as I was about to book an appointment for my son and after having a look on my dentists website it appears they charge £10 for a check-up for kids. If you are a private patient your children are free, but NHS kids pay £10.

I thought all healthcare for children under 18 was free?

brook2jack

Yes nhs dental treatment is free for under 18s. I suspect what is happening is your dentist doesn't see children on the nhs only privately. If they see a parent privately that subsides the child's treatment so no charge. if parents are not private patients at practice then kids are charged.

lilymay1

brook2jack wrote: »

Yes nhs dental treatment is free for under 18s. I suspect what is happening is your dentist doesn't see children on the nhs only privately. If they see a parent privately that subsides the child's treatment so no charge. if parents are not private patients at practice then kids are charged.

Ahh, so my dentist doesn't see NHS children. Right, okay, that makes sense. I tried to phone but I suspect they are closed over Xmas. No need to work when you make such huge amounts of money eh?

sulkisu

brook2jack wrote: »

Yes nhs dental treatment is free for under 18s. I suspect what is happening is your dentist doesn't see children on the nhs only privately. If they see a parent privately that subsides the child's treatment so no charge. if parents are not private patients at practice then kids are charged.

Thank you for this, it explains a lot. Following on from your earlier post, I called my dentist again to make an appointment for my son and at first was told (yet again) that he was too young and there was no need at this stage. I didn't mention MSE but did say that had been told that children could be seen at any age - the younger the better. He reponded by saying that he would see him but it would have to be private as it is not regarded as necessary, therefore incurring a fee. Many parents choose not to pay.

So time for a new dentist, methinks. I have no problem paying for my son to be seen. I am just peeved that for the past 7 months I have been told it was pointless, instead of telling me that it would be beneficial but just not free.