At what age do you allow your LO to brush their teeth on their own? And how much checking do you do, if any, afterward?
LO is 4 and she brushes her own teeth but I always go back through and brush them when she is done. She has been recently saying "but I already brushed them!", so it got me thinking, what age can they brush their teeth well enough to not need checking?
hostess / watermelon / 14932 posts
Olivia does her own but I use the magic timer app. So she brushes for a full two minutes. I've watched her and she goes through all her teeth, front and back. I'll go over them if she had candy for dessert or something, or had a day with a lot of junk food (cookout, party etc).
pomegranate / 3438 posts
DS is 4.5 and I still brush for him. Sometimes he will do it and then I will go over them again because he doesn't do a very good job. Not sure when I will stop! I had horrible teeth as a kid and I don't want that for him.
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
She brushes and then we do it. The dentist said to do that until 7.
coconut / 8234 posts
LOs dentist suggested that we brush her teeth & floss at night and she brush in the morning. I'm usually in the bathroom with her, so if she hasn't brushed long enough I follow-up or have her keep brushing.
persimmon / 1458 posts
My son will be 5 at the end of the month and he usually says "but I already did it" but I always try to do it after him because I don't think he is doing a good enough job.
grapefruit / 4291 posts
My big girl (almost four) brushes her own teeth in the morning then we both do them at night.
persimmon / 1445 posts
My DD is three so we still brush them for her (although she gets the first turn and then we just "polish" them). Our dentist said to go back over them until the kids are 8 or 9 which seems crazy to me!
squash / 13208 posts
@Bao: our dentist said until age 8 and that's what I did. On the eve of his 8th birthday I told him this is the last time I will ever brush your teeth and then I made a drum roll sound and of course he rolled his eyes 
Its all on him now and I admit I am sooo nervous about getting cavities if he doesn't brush well!
pomegranate / 3127 posts
DS is nearly four and he brushes himself, then we do it with him. DD, who's one, has been brushing her teeth by herself (it was her idea ) but now that she's got all her molars, I'm going to start doing some quality control with her too.
honeydew / 7463 posts
We actually just went to our first dentist appt at 2 years. I was surprised that she said until they can tie their own shoes we should be brushing their teeth. What you're doing is right according to her (let DD do it then go back over them).
She said that proper brushing is actually a fine motor skill similar to tying shoes so that is how she judges when they are ready. I can't remember what age she said for sure but I THINK she said that's usually 6? Does that sound right?
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
My son is almost 6, I always check his teeth, especially along the gum lines.
hostess / papaya / 10540 posts
We've let our boys around 2 or 3, but we always help out with a second round of brushing.
squash / 13199 posts
@Bao: My LO is 4 and I still floss and brush her teeth. I'll let her brush for a bit after I am done flossing after I am done. I am very paranoid about cavities and dental health so I make sure I do it right. I dont think at 4 they can properly brush all the angles of their teeth and gum
coconut / 8854 posts
My dentist is very active in different pediatric dental committees....and she suggests I brush my DD teeth until she's 10! I don't think I will do it for that long, but I will definitely check on her. Dental health is so important!
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