brushing teeth - how do you do it!!

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Ds (18 mths) is actually very good with his toothbrush as in he likes messing with it, but I'm not sure he is actually cleaning his teeth. Myself or DH obviously help him but I just never think they have been brushed for long enough, or properly IYSWIM. He wriggles so much I am sure it is sometimes like just wiping his teeth with the brush.
Is this what it is like for everyone at this age? Do you stick to a definite amount of time for teeth brushing i.e. 2 minutes or whatever? Are we going to be responsible for his teeth falling out
FWIW he doesn't eat any sweets but has loads of fruit every day.

Both my boys just chewed the toothbrush or sucked it at that age when I tried to brush! I didn't have a set time for brushing, just as long as I could keep hold of them! They eventually get the hang of letting you brush, but I wouldn't worry too much. Maybe take him to the dentist next time you go, and he can sit on your lap while the dentist has a quick look at his teeth.

My dentist told me it's actually ore about the habit at first, as wiping their teeth quickly with your finger would be sufficient, they seem to have good natural defenses... Unless they eat sugary stuff al day...
A good way to do it is brush your teeth at the same time and exagerate the movements, he'll learn to imitate you.

Let him see in a mirror - so he can see what he's doing and you stand by his side and let him copy you.

My DS 23 months just chews the brush and occasionally lets you brush them. With DD I think we let her play with the brush until she reached 2 and then took the hard line that her teeth needed brushing properly and we brushed them. If she refused we held her arms by her side so we could clean them. It wasnt very pleasant at the time but then neither would a dentist trip to have a filling be. That lasted a few weeks and since then she now lets us brush them fine.

We brush hers - I sing a nursery rhyme for each section (top left, top right, middle, etc) - say Pat a cake or 3 blind mice. Works surprisingly well - dd does change her mind mid-brush about the song, and mutters "GrandyYork!" with a mouthful of toothbrush

sounds like we are ok then - he actually whinges for the toothbrush (which I suppose is good) but chews on it rather than brushing, which he doesn't seem to like. I've taken him to the dentist already when I went for a check up, just so he'd get used to it so hopefully he will be ok with the next visit.
Have also tried brushing together but then he just wants both toothbrushes