brushing toddler teeth

[glamourdrudge]

How do you persuade your 2yr old to let you brush her teeth? I'm swinging between insisting she does it because I've seen all the dried fruit and stuff she's eaten during the day (which means having an evil pin-down few minutes from which we both emerge shaken) OR encouraging her and praising which means she chews her brush a bit then chucks it across the room. I decided that DS really did have to clean his teeth around 14 months or so and he screamed for a while but now it's easy peasy. Maybe he's just more compliant? Whadja fink?

I let my 17 month old have a toothbrush to brush my teeth with while I brush hers. It does result in some quite painful pokes to the roof of my mouth but it's infinitely preferable to the yelling she did before. Also makes it easy to get her to open her mouth wide etc as she copies me.

Hello, my 13 month old has never liked me brushing his teeth - but i'm desperate to get a more positive routine. Seems lots of you are resorting to the 'pin down and brush them yourselves solution' - i'm up for it - but just wondered if anyone whose done this could offer some words of advice/encouragement/reassuance? I kind of feel like i'm traumatising him. I know rationally that his oral health is critical - but still, i do kind of feel like i've failed if I've had to resort to pinning him down. Thanks.