First teeth: how to brush them?

Your baby’s dental care doesn’t just begin with the eruption of the first tooth. Even before that, you can follow a few rules.

Oral care even before the first teeth come through

Germs that are in your mouth can easily be transmitted to your baby. That’s why you shouldn’t lick your baby’s spoon or pacifier . In this way, caries or periodontosis bacteria can be transmitted very easily, which then spread and multiply in your baby’s mouth before it even has a tooth. The earlier you start caring for your baby’s teeth, the better their first teeth are protected against tooth decay.

When to start brushing your first teeth?

Of course, you should wait for the first teething spurt – because babies are understandably very sensitive during teething. When the tooth has grown out several millimeters, care can begin. First teeth should be brushed at least once, better twice a day. If you only brush your baby’s teeth once a day at first, it’s not so bad. But if almost all milk teeth are there, the teeth should be cleaned twice a day.

How to properly brush your first teeth

The earlier you start caring for your baby’s teeth, the better the teeth will be protected against the destructive tooth decay. However, at this age, normal tooth brushing, as you know it from yourself, is a long way off.

• The small toothbrush thimbles with soft rubber bristles are very practical. They are placed on the index finger and can be used for dental care but also for massaging the gums in case of itching during tooth eruption.
• The trade now offers small baby toothbrushes with nubs . They are ideal for brushing the first teeth from the age of 1 1/2 years.
• Another alternative is a special nubbed teether that has a small, very soft brush.

From the age of two, your child can pick up their own toothbrush. A pretty children’s toothbrush is a great idea. Beautifully colorful and with a pretty shape – with a bit of luck your child will even have fun brushing their teeth. You can read about when your child will be more independent when brushing their teeth in our article “ When can my child brush itself? “.

First teeth: when can the baby join in?

The best thing to do is to start slowly and playfully introducing your little one to the subject of brushing teeth while they are still babies.

• Role model : The best way for your child to learn how to brush their teeth is through imitation. Let your baby watch you too. If your child watches you brush their teeth, they will see that brushing their teeth is normal and will get used to it more quickly. So it would be best if you always brush your own teeth in the presence of your baby.
• Playing with the toothbrush : Start giving your baby the toothbrush as early as possible and let them experience it for the first time. If your child can hold the toothbrush themselves, they feel independent and show interest in the toothbrush.
• Brush mum’s teeth : You can also let your baby brush your teeth more often. Then you reverse the game. He is shown how to use the toothbrush and how to clean in a playful and joyful way.

You can read about the best way to motivate your child to brush their first teeth in our article ” Tips for brushing teeth: How to make brushing teeth fun for children “. It is important that the children learn the right KAI tooth brushing technique right from the start. First you clean, then the child cleans and then you clean, your child does it more and more himself. Like our article “ When can my child clean itself? But if you explain it more precisely, children can only really clean themselves towards the end of elementary school.

When to brush your teeth with toothpaste?

From the second birthday, your child should brush their teeth at least twice a day with a fluoride-containing children’s toothpaste. If your child takes fluoride tablets, you should refrain from using fluoride toothpaste to avoid excessive fluoride intake. In our article ” How to brush milk teeth correctly ” you will also learn more about what you should pay attention to later when buying toothpaste for your child.

Taking the baby to the dentist?

From the age of two, your child should also have their first visit to the dentist. With a lot of patience and care, and a thorough check-up during the first visit to the dentist ‘s office , this adventure will also be child’s play. Of course, you can also take your child with you earlier to your own examination. Maybe your dentist will take a look inside your child’s mouth. As long as there are no abnormalities to be seen beforehand, you do not have to take your child to the dentist.