Toothpaste! Teaching a Child to Spit...

Hi L.,
You have to work separately on the "spitting game" and than apply it into the brushing. Make it fun! Get out in the back yard with bottle of water, set a target and see who will be able to get the target spitting water. Or make a "long spitting competition". Don't forget to tell him that spitting is not always appropriate and let him know when and where he can spit. Once he master the spitting, apply it to the brushing. I didn't let my son using the fluoride paste until he learned how to spit, but than he enjoyed it so much, he just started spitting everywhere and on everything. So, be careful. Good luck!

i would put like a ring or a fun colored cup in the sink and make a game out of it. like how fast can u fill up the cup or try and spit in the circle. something that would make him want something to come out of his mouth. maybe brush your teeth at the same time and try to race him (letting him win of course) hope this helps

considering that portland water is not flouridated and you should be using a pea sized amount, it is not harmful for him to swallow what little amount he takes in. in fact, the lack of flouride exposed to our children (filtered water contains no flouride either) and the little time we tend to make them brush, it just might be good for his teeth. my pediatrician prescribed floride drops to my 16 month old twins. ask your dentist what he/she thinks.

My son is 4 1/2. When we transitioned to real toothpaste we bought him a special spiderman rinse cup and filled it with water to swish to teach him to spit (just as you mentioned). I think having a little extra liquid in his mouth helped him learn the process. He used it all the time in the beginning but now just brushes and spits. As others mentioned, when we first started, he would spit at times other than brushing his teeth. This too was a short phase.

I'd also recommend the Toms of Maine toothpaste, the one with flouride in it. It definitely isn't sweet, at least the baking soda one isn't. He'll want to spit it out.

I would not worry about him spitting out the toothpaste. You are correct in giving him just a tiny amount (a pea size is perfect). The toothpaste will not hurt him in this small amount and in fact, the extra time that the fluoride from the toothpaste is on his teeth, the better. If you are still concerned, you can try using a cup and water. Just so you know, I am a dental hygienist and I am the mother of two boys.

Hi L.,
I just started with my kids. They love to "swish and spit". So after they are done brushing, I have them rinse their mouths out with water and they GET to spit it out in the sink. They think it's fun to do that. So then, we carried over to when we brush. Now they GET to sit on the counter beside the sink. I brush their teeth, but THEY tell me when it's time to lean over and spit. I try to give them control. Also, I don't use sweet toothpaste. I don't feel like toothpaste should have sugar in it. Isn't that what we are trying to brush off? Anyhoo, it seems like when I use a toothpaste like Tom's of Maine, they are not as interested in swallowing it. It's not as "yummy" as the "princess paste" we were given as a gift. Know what I mean?
Worth a shot. Good luck!
A.

Hi L.,

We had the same problem until we started keeping my daughter's favorite plastic cup in her bathroom. Rinsing her mouth with water was all it took for her to start spitting the toothpaste.

Good luck!

I told my 3 year-old daughter to spit and try to hit the "target", the drain. It became fun so now she always spits.

My kids were not very good at that either. My daughter is almost 6 and still does not spit it all out. I just make sure she only uses a very small amount of tooth paste

Hi L.,

I know this doesn't answer your question regarding spitting, but it will help you with getting teeth brushed. One of my kids is disabled and goes to a medical dentist. She says that I just need to dip the toothbrush in a flouride rinse (like ACT) and brush his teeth - he doesn't need to rinse or spit and the amount on the brush is perfectly fine.

My son is 14 now and has never had a cavity so it seems to be working. His occupational therapist at school wanted to try to teach him to spit but I said "no - please don't" as then he will use that new skill inappropriately. I know that's not the case with your son but I'm thrilled that my son can't spit!

Good luck,

C.

my son was unable to spit too. What we did was go out side with a glass or two of water and see who could spit farer, it worked now my son can spit after he brushes his teeth.
have fun and I hope it works

I'm a dental hygienist. Go ahead and try teaching him to spit, but don't worry too much about it. Just be sure to keep the toothpaste out of his reach and put it on his brush yourself (like you're already doing). All you need is enough to color the bristles, or about the size of a pea. The amount of fluoride he receives from that won't harm him--may actually do him good! (Be careful, though--there's enough fluoride in a tube of toothpaste to kill a very small child--so don't let him have the tube until you're sure he won't try to eat it.) We pretty much assume that most toothpaste will go into a child's body until they're about five years old, so it sounds like you're son is right on track.

I've realized that my boys just can't spit yet, except for when sticking out their tongues:) Let me know what works, maybe we can try it.

you could try one of the little squirt bottles and squirt into his open mouth- kinda like the dentist, but less force.

HI,
its not a big deal!! at least he brushes his teeth. just buy the tooth paste without fluride until he learns to spit it out. without the fluride it is not harmful if they swallow it but it still get the job done!!!

Yes, I think having him practice with water will help. Do the water spitting during the day and not near tooth brushing. Make it fun. If you could do it outside you could "compete" with him on who can spit the furthest.

My grandkids like to practice "swimming" in the bath tub. While doing this they get water in their mouths and spit on each other. For awhile they were spitting just to be spitting and doing it anywhere, living room, sidewalk, store. Spitting was so much fun! Their mother and I would stop them saying spitting anywhere but in the sink or tub is inappropriate. Stop it! I think this lasted a week or two.

In the meantime you could go back to using baby toothpaste. It's formulated to be safe when swallowed.

I rinse my mouth after I spit out the tooth paste. I used to use a tumbler of water but found that cupping my hand worked just as well.
Perhaps starting a different routine would help. He also will have more in his mouth to spit. Have him rinse his mouth after brushing. It could be a sort of game. "Let's get all those critters out of your mouth." sort of thing.
And show him when you spit that the water is all cloudy and needs to go in the sink instead of his tummy.

My 5 yo loves the taste of tooth paste. If we don't watch him he puts gobs on, licks it off, puts on more gobs. He'll also do this during the day.

Well, I'm glad I'm not the only one who has a child that won't spit! I tried everything, including having him practice with solid things like raisins. He would swallow them whole instead of spit! It has gotten a little easier since he is now six, but I had switched him to a non-flouride toothpaste and now he refuses to use any other kind. (He is a VERY stubborn child.) Good luck! btw, my other children spit just fine.

If you use a good natural organic toothpaste (I like Weleda) without fluoride, there is no harm in swallowing. I just use a little bit of toothpaste when I brush, and just swallow it. Much simpler!