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Here’s a wake up call for all of us.  For the first time in 2 centuries children may have a shorter life expectancy than their parents.

A report published in The New England Journal of Medicine, says the prevalence and severity of obesity is so great, especially in children, that the associated diseases and complications - Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney failure, cancer - are likely to strike people at younger and younger ages.

I must confess, I don’t read the newspaper or listen to talkback radio so perhaps I’m behind the times in catching up with this little snippet.    But when I heard it my reaction was one of sadness, then anger (with a good dose of that old friend- Motherhood Guilt!)

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It can become one of those daunting tasks. A constant nightly battle involving too much stress and too many tears. If you eventually do get it done, you can be left wondering if you have even done it properly at all.
Brushing your toddler’s teeth!
By starting early and incorporating these steps into your daily routine, hopefully the task can be less of a chore, and maybe even a bit of fun.

What do I use to brush my toddler’s teeth?

When your child’s first teeth are coming in, you can wash them by rubbing them with a wet wash cloth or piece of gauze once a day. By the time the back molars have developed (on average at 14-18 months old) a soft-bristled toddler brush should be used. These are available from most pharmacies or from your dentist. The Australian Dental Association (ADA) recommends that plain water be used for children under 18 months old. There are low-fluoride and flouride-free toothpastes available for older children, but care should be taken to only use a “pea-sized” amount. This is because toddlers will usually swallow the toothpaste, rather than spit it all out, and too much ingested toothpaste is potentially harmful. Replace toothbrushes every three months or when the bristles appear frayed.

How do I brush my toddler’s teeth effectively?

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As you know, it is not always easy getting your child to go to bed, let alone staying there and then falling asleep.  Your child may be the “stay-up late, no matter what” type.  You know, its ten o’clock and you’re bleary eyed but he is wide awake and bushy tailed.  Or its 3 a.m. and it’s the fifth time your angel has woken up and called for you from her bed.  Perhaps it seven-thirty, bedtime and your “adored one” won’t budge from the television set and lounge room.   Or, all of these scenarios apply to your household or its something else and you too are drop dead tired.  Sound familiar?

It was like this too in our house, and on top of all this one of my daughters liked to wake up at 4.30 a.m. and that was the time she expected us to start our day, and for a while we did.  However, the time came when all this stopped and I invented a foolproof never-fail-go-to-bed-routine, which also included both my daughters falling asleep fast!  Yes, a dream come true – for us all!