How to get your kids to brush without the battle: Ask a dental expert

[MaddyMumsnet]

Beat the challenge of getting your kids to brush their teeth.
Ask our dental expert about good oral health habits and what you can do to help your kids enjoy keeping their teeth healthy and at the same time reduce your stress! Are you struggling to get your child to brush their teeth? Worried about cavities and visits to the dentist? Too many sugary treats? Perhaps your child has physical or sensory challenges which make it difficult to brush? Our dental health expert is here to answer your burning questions and help you find long lasting routines that fit seamlessly into your family life.

About the expert
James Goolnik BDS MSc, a dentist with a passion for nutrition. James is the Founder of the Optimal Dental Health in London and a member of The International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology, and fully SMART certified. James was previously President of the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentists and is now head judge of the Private Dentistry Awards and lectures internationally on the mouth body connection. James has twice been voted the most influential person in dentistry in the UK. He is currently studying for a diploma in functional nutrition with The Institute of Optimal Nutritionists and his mission is to help the UK get healthier starting with their mouths! James is married with three children.

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Here’s what the Peppersmith® team has to say:
We’re on a mission to educate parents and kids about the benefits of healthy teeth and how to keep them healthy. That’s why our naturally delicious mints and pastilles are sugar-free, made with 100% plant based sweetener, xylitol (no aspartame here!) and are seriously good for kids, as well as parents and mums-to-be. Studies have shown that xylitol can help reduce and reverse cavities in children and regular chewing of xylitol gum during pregnancy and early motherhood reduces cavity causing bacteria transmission to children. As well as looking after teeth, we like to look after the planet. We use FSC-certified cardboard for our boxes and recyclable PPE for our pouches. Peppersmith is available on our website Peppersmith.co.uk and at Ocado, Sainsburys Local, Holland & Barrett, WHSmith Travel and Starbucks.

Are sugar free juices any good - in terms of the artificial sweeteners - I am offering the Robinsons juices but not sure about the dental implications - they brush morning and evening

Any suggestions for fun ways for my children to clean their teeth?

We are taking our 7 year old on a long haul flight in August. She won't clean her teeth most days and is a bit anxious about the flight. Last time she got bunged up ears and she remembers it being painful. I was going to suggest she chews some gum but that's not great for a kid - what can you suggest?

I have read about xylitol on here. Is it OK for pregnant women to chew gums made from xylitol?

My gums are in poor health - bleeding and look like they are shrinking, what can I do about that?

In an ideal world, should we be worried about unnecessary chemicals, sweeteners, colourings etc in children’s and adults toothpaste?

Are there any brands you could recommend that would also not be tested on animals and vegan please?

Hi James! My kid is going through the stage of having a complete meltdowns before bed and point blank refusing to brush her teeth. I've contemplated those chewy tooth brushes that you get in the machines at service station, but they can be hard on the gums. How can I make things fun, just for the evenings? Her teeth are in great condition. Mornings are fine - perhaps because she's already sleepy! Thank you.

When it comes to brushing my 3-year old daughters teeth, there's resistance to the activity (this is an understatement to put it lightly). I'm concerned given the resistance that we're not doing a good enough job brushing her teeth. What can we do to make the process easier and ensure that we're getting rid the plaque and bacteria?

When my children had their very first dentist visit, the dentist recommended I start them on a mild mint toothpaste and not a flavoured one. Why is this important?

Should Children just use toothpaste? They brush twice a day and do mouth wash once a day, but do they need to floss also? And is plaque removal at home safe for them with home dental tools?

My baby is 15 weeks old and I can see his bottom two teeth through his gums although they are not through yet. Lots of dribbling and chewing going on! Do I need to do anything to keep his gums clean, when do I start brushing and when should he first visit the dentist? Thank you!

Do you recommend extraction of first permanent molars with severe hypomineralisation? Or is it possible to keep and restore? Also will having these teeth missing affect their dental health in any other way? Poor bite etc?

My 10 year old daughter still sucks her thumb and she has buck teeth as a result. I've tried to get her to stop - special nail polish, thumbsies, plasters, fidget toys but nothing works. My dentist told me I should do everything I could to get her to stop but I've tried and nothing works. Do you have any suggestions please?

Is it dangerous to swallow toothpaste, mine will have their teeth brushed with milk teeth toothpaste but swallow most rather than spit out - should I be worried ?

Mine clamp shit and bite the toothbrush - and eventually we will get some sort of cleaning of teeth - and the soft toothbrush count is very high and we notice the bristles being bent really quickly - would you go for a harder brush, or different technique - we try to make it fun - but it's turned into a battle - I want to nip it in the bud before it becomes somthing they are refusing long term.

My DS has an annoying habit of swallowing the (3-5 yrs) toothpaste, obviously this is a habit we really need to get out of before it contains fluoride but how much toothpaste is acceptable to be brushed with as a minimum!

My youngest son has a slight overlap on his top two front teeth. I'm wondering if baby teeth reflect the position of the adult teeth, or is it possible that the adult teeth will grow straighter? If there anything I can do now to ensure they are straight - I'd like to avoid braces if possible.

Are there any sweets that help keep a child’s teeth clean? I’ve almost given up on trying to clean my daughter’s teeth. She flatly refuses and I have to bribe her with treats (I know that’s wrong!) but there must be a sweet or something that also helps keep her teeth clean.

This is one I can answer! As long as it’s got the same amount of fluoride as adult toothpaste it’s fine
i can’t tolerate mint and my dentist advised to use it was absolutely fine

Thanks so much to everyone who’s posted so far – there’s already a really useful mix of questions coming through 😬🪥

Just a quick reminder: there’s still time to add your own question! Whether it’s about technique, timing, toothpaste or tooth-friendly snacks, our expert James Goolnik will be here soon to answer as many of your questions as possible.

💡 Don’t forget – Peppersmith are offering Mumsnet users an exclusive 20% off their website – just use the code MUMS20 at checkout or quote it on the phone (020 8788 2080). Offer ends 31st August.

Despite regular brushing, my 13 year old son's back teeth show signs of decay. Is regular brushing always enough? My dentist adviced a coating on the teeth to protect them.

My DC aged 13 has hypomineralisation. She has had 1 root canal on a molar and has had protection on her other molars where there were very early signs of decay. It was a big shock as I never bought sweets or biscuits etc routinely.

We are now going almost completely sugar free. She still has white teeth but apparently the enamel is very thin. She really misses juice. We tried sugar free fruit flavoured water, but then I read that even without the sugar, the citric acid in these drinks can damage the enamel. So it is just plain water and milk now, I will try to add strawberries/ mint etc to a jug of water to see if that helps, not sure if lemon slices would be a good idea.

It is a real challenge trying to give her food that she likes and finding options when we are out, avoiding sugar and now low pH drinks as well. I am also almost completely avoiding crisps long term because of them potentially sticking to her teeth. She has berries as a snack and has fruit after supper, and sometimes at breakfast with Shredded Wheat (the lowest sugar cereal I could find)

I found a fancy sugar free chocolate bar at Easter. I occasionally bake sugar free cakes eg for birthdays, or make sugar free jelly with raspberries or blueberries. I use xylitol and erithritol and sometimes stevia, I try to find alternative treats for birthday parties and social occasions.

I have variously read that enamel can't ever recover and elsewhere that there can be some remineralisation from early signs of decay; I am not sure which is right.

Also, presumably if the surfaces of the back molars have been covered over , it might be difficult to see if there is further decay, so I am wondering about that.

Also, I am wondering about the future, and how to minimise problems - is she going to end up with a lot of restorative dentistry and veneers and how is that going to work if the underlying teeth are weak. She doesn't really like the electric toothbrush I got her. I have been supervising brushing more carefully.

I would love any more advice or ideas.

Also, is the hypomineralisation at all related to me being really ill and needing a lot of antibiotics when I was pregnant?

What's the science between the ''xylitol can help reduce and reverse cavities'' I'd do anything I could to prevent cavities - but reversing them I did not know that this was possible ? TY

I use the floss sticks for my teeth, what do you think about this and children, is the thread within the stick too sharp for young gums ?
If this is the case do we need to floss between young teeth - especially the second adult teeth ?