What do you do when your young child refuses to brush or floss their teeth? If getting them to practice good oral care is getting old, there’s hope.
When it comes to motivating anyone (especially children), often setting an example works. Brushing and flossing together and making it a game can get them in the mood to follow in your steps. Make faces at each other, brush to their favorite music, or randomly freeze like a statue when so many strokes or so much time has gone by, can get them happily engaged.
You can also ask Dr. Armand Begian for ideas when you bring your child into their next appointment. Our experienced team is always happy to explain to your little one why a clean mouth is so important to their developing teeth (and what can happen if when it’s not). We can even help you come up with fun incentives to get your child excited about hygiene care.
Along with enlisting our help at Sugarbug Dental & Orthodontics, you can broaden your support team by involving the people your child looks up to whether fictional or real. If they have a fictional favorite, get some books on dental care that features this character. And don’t forget to ask a beloved sibling, teacher or babysitter to give them encouraging words.
A powerful motivator many parents (and dentists) turn to is The Tooth Fairy! Children love placing a lost tooth under their pillow for a treasure. But if they’re careless about their oral hygiene, mention that their teeth didn’t pass inspection and leave them tips on how to do better. Or it could say that the lost tooth didn’t meet her standards, so they’ll only get a fraction of what a healthier tooth would have earned. It could make them determined to work harder on their hygiene habits.
Only you know what motivates your child most, and by making tooth cleaning fun, you can help them improve their daily habits. To learn more about your child’s dental hygiene in Oxnard, California, we invite you to call (805) 985-2400 to make an appointment today!