# Do you wake up your child to brush their teeth at night?



## Amila (Apr 4, 2006)

I do most of the time, but my husband rolls his eyes at me.


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## I-AM-Mother (Aug 6, 2008)

uhhh...you're special??


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## dawncayden (Jan 24, 2006)

I put never, but do you mean if they fall asleep without brushing or after every nursing?


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## Malva (Nov 2, 2005)

I put never. Breastmilk has some sort of antibacterial properties.


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## KD's Momma (Oct 24, 2004)

What do yo mean "wake them up at night"? My 4yo and 2yo brush their teeth at night (and morning) as part of their nightime routine. I guess if they fell asleep before we got to bed, I wouldn't wake them just to brush their teeth, but this happens so rarely it wouldn't be a big deal to skip.


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## Amila (Apr 4, 2006)

I don't mean after exclusively nursing. I mean if I haven't brushed her teeth all day, and she fell asleep. We always nursed after brushing teeth.


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## Malva (Nov 2, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *KD's Momma* 
My 4yo and 2yo brush their teeth at night (and morning) as part of their nightime routine. I guess if they fell asleep before we got to bed, I wouldn't wake them just to brush their teeth, but this happens so rarely it wouldn't be a big deal to skip.









:


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## NotTheOnlyOne (Oct 23, 2006)

no way. Never wake a sleeping baby, toddler, child.... I follow _that_ rule.


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## Alyantavid (Sep 10, 2004)

Yeah I'm a firm believer in never waking a sleeping child/baby/toddler. We brush every night, if he falls asleep once in a blue moon without brushing, I let him sleep. Its not that big of a deal to me.


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## zoe196 (Mar 20, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *NotTheOnlyOne* 
no way. Never wake a sleeping baby, toddler, child.... I follow _that_ rule.









me too!
Zoe, mama to Thomas 01-06


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## readytobedone (Apr 6, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *NotTheOnlyOne* 
no way. Never wake a sleeping baby, toddler, child.... I follow _that_ rule.









yup, i would NEVER wake her up to brush her teeth. especially not baby teeth--she has a whole new set coming if these rot out


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## CameronsMama (Apr 2, 2007)

Never. DS has fallen asleep at night without brushing his teeth, so biggie. I make sure we brush his teeth every morning, so if we miss a night here and there I don't worry. Most nights it's hard to get him to fall asleep, so whenever he goes down on his own, you could not pay me enough to wake him.


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## Ks Mama (Aug 22, 2006)

I have never woken a child to brush their teeth. I have on the rare occasion helped my 3 yo brush her teeth if she woke in the night, and already wanted to use the bathroom, and hadn't brushed her teeth before bed. But that's really really rare because we always bathe before bed, and brushing teeth is part of bathtime.

Finally, I nurse my kids, so I'm not that worried about tooth decay.


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## nextcommercial (Nov 8, 2005)

My dd would NOT have been pleasant if I woke her for anything, much less to brush her teeth.

I'm not happy if someone wakes me either, so I guess I don't blame her.


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## AllisonR (May 5, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Amila* 
I do most of the time, but my husband rolls his eyes at me.

??? Brush their teeth before they go to bed. If you just let them fall asleep whenever, so you can't be consistent, then you could brush right after dinner. And if they BF to sleep, then again, change the time to before breast, or after dinner....


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## operamommy (Nov 9, 2004)

No way - that's crazy talk!


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## KarmaJoy (Jan 25, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *operamommy* 
No way - that's crazy talk!









Seriously, my kids require very little sleep to go, go, go. I think I would be out of my mind to wake them up to brush teeth when asleep. Of course, it is very rare that they would fall asleep without brushing.


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## dawncayden (Jan 24, 2006)

No I wouldn't wake to brush, I would just brush extra well in the morning.


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## nalo (Oct 25, 2005)

I would be out of my flippin' mind to wake up my DD for ANY reason. I would never even consider waking her to brush her teeth if we forgot. I agree - that's crazy talk!!!


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## BarefootScientist (Jul 24, 2007)

You're joking right?


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## Eaglevoice (Nov 30, 2004)

No. Why would you do that?


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## Maxine45 (Oct 29, 2005)

we plan ahead and predict that DS will be falling asleep in the evening, so we brush before that occurs.


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## Collinsky (Jul 7, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *dawncayden* 
No I wouldn't wake to brush, I would just brush extra well in the morning.









:


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## nov05mama (Mar 29, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Alyantavid* 
Yeah I'm a firm believer in never waking a sleeping child/baby/toddler. We brush every night, if he falls asleep once in a blue moon without brushing, I let him sleep. Its not that big of a deal to me.









:


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## Norasmomma (Feb 26, 2008)

I would most of the time because tooth decay is not alright with me, I'm a paranoid freak about it(DH has bad teeth genetics). It is part of her night time routine, but if she were to fall asleep before I'd brush them in the AM. It's alright to think I'm crazy, I already said I was paranoid.


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## finn'smama (Jan 11, 2006)

never.


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## MrsMike (Aug 4, 2006)

We have really bad dental genetics coming from my side, but I'm still not waking him to brush his teeth. I try to get him right after dinner because he can fall asleep anywhere from 8 to midnight (good Lord, that needs to stop). If we get wrapped up in something and I forget then I forget it. Besides, we can buy him new teeth when he's older.


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## ryansma (Sep 6, 2006)

Never. We brush before bed as part of the bedtime routine. If for some reason we are late getting home and he has fallen asleep in the car it waits until morning. I wouldn't like being woken to have my teeth brushed.


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## mamadelbosque (Feb 6, 2007)

Your kidding, right? I try to brush DS' teeth before he falls asleep but it doesn't always happen... but I don't sweat it and I DEFINETLY don't wake him up. It'd be WAY too traumatic on both our parts. My mind boggles at the concept!


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## mama_ani (Aug 2, 2007)

Never.


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## princesspennie (Jul 26, 2005)

I voted never. My 3 yr. old has always loved to brush his teeth..we have a bath routine that includes "brushing the sugar bugs" off his teeth. However he does have a snack and a drink after that sometimes and I do not make him re-brush his teeth.
If for some reason his routine is off and he misses his teeth brushing at night I would never ever wake him..he is a horror when he is awoken from his night sleep...


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## eclipse (Mar 13, 2003)

Nope, never.


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## Breeder (May 28, 2006)

With our bedtime routine it has never been an issue, we eat at 7, short playtime shower at 7:45, he brushes after the shower and then bed. If we are on a trip and he falls asleep in the car I'm not waking him. I wouldn't want to be woke up to brush I extend him the same courtesy.


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## spmamma (Sep 2, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *NotTheOnlyOne* 
no way. Never wake a sleeping baby, toddler, child.... I follow _that_ rule.









This is my mantra.


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## Pax3 (May 2, 2008)

Having just had put my DD under general anesthesia 2 days ago for her requiring four crowns, three of which were baby root canals, for teeth that would have needed to be pulled otherwise likely by the New Year, and her just being 2 yrs, 3 mths, I say *absolutely, yes, yes, yes!!* We do nurse at night, but if she has fallen asleep prior to her bedtime tooth brushing after eating or drinking anything but breast milk or water I will absolutely wake her up.

Yes, they're baby teeth and will be replaced, but at her age, she would be going without them for *at least four years* - just too long and kiddos are meant to have their teeth for eating, speech, spacing, etc. There's also the need to consider the risk of infection and other inssues that come with tooth decay and extraction...

Then again, I realize I'm coming from the point of view of a Mama with a kiddo prone to significant tooth decay who has already needed some major hospital-based dental work and it is a completely different perspective from where I was at before all this came about when I wouldn't have worried about it at all. I'd never have imagine all this, but here we are. For us now, tooth brushing is as non-negotiable as diaper-changing and will be for our DD due in November, too, starting pre-teeth with gauze.

So anyway, yes.


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## bright-midnight (Mar 26, 2007)

Never. She already hates having her teeth brushed, I can't imagine waking her up if she fell asleep before we brushed them.


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## thixle (Sep 26, 2007)

I voted "other" because I can't believe this is not a joke...
I gotta go get a towel for the monitor now. I laughed so hard coffee came out my nose.


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## earthgirl (Feb 6, 2006)

No freaking way. I can't imagine deliberately waking DD.


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## jenners26 (Mar 16, 2008)

I thought this was a joke too!!









No way, Not ever ever ever ever. I have three kids, two of whom are under 19 months....NO WAY do you mess with sleep in this house. I don't care if it's been four days since the child has had her teeth brushed...No chance, come hell or high water, would I give up one SECOND of sleep!

And, I do NOT mean this in a snarky way...but once you have more than one child....you learn to re-prioritize...and in nearly every case I can think of...sleep comes WAAAAY before teeth brusing!!


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## Amila (Apr 4, 2006)

OMG I can't believe I am in the minority. I never thought this to be a crazy thing! We almost always brush before DD goes to sleep, but there are those occasional times she falls asleep (and stays asleep) in the car. Or those other times where she randomly passes out on the couch before we get a chance to brush. So I usually brush them while shes asleep. So I guess I don't technically "wake" her up.

Sometimes she sleeps through me brushing, other times she wakes up for a minute, but falls right back to sleep.

I am really paranoid about her having cavities and having to go under GA. DH has *really* bad teeth.

I am NOT as strict about morning tooth brushing, mostly because with everything else we have to do I forget. But I still usually do it.

Wow. Lol.


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## karen1968 (Oct 2, 2006)

Never. Even though my child has mild caries. We did nightwean, though, and we brush his teeth between nighttime milkies and sleep. And I brush them soon after waking (he sleeps 8-7 about, nurses at 4 & 6 usually).

I do know someone, whose son had worse caries than mine, who used Spiffies wipes or spry gel after each nighttime nursing.


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## knowerofnada (Dec 4, 2006)

I've got to say, I'm adamant about dental hygiene, and make DD brush twice a day, but if she's asleep, I would never wake her up. Skipping at times like that is necessary and I think it would be way overboard to wake her up.


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## karen1968 (Oct 2, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Malva* 
I put never. Breastmilk has some sort of antibacterial properties.

This isn't exactly the case when it comes to the bacteria that causes early childhood caries. It's true that breastmilk in and of itself will not cause tooth decay. What cause the decay is bacteria, and once the bacteria are present, they will feed on ANY food in the mouth, including breastmilk. I know there are people on this list who believe it isn't true, but in my experience, it is. And there are a couple of studies to back that up (the one I'm thinking of was done with indigenous people in Malaysia, but I can't find the link)


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## Justmee (Jun 6, 2005)

*Never* wake a sleeping child... I would have 3 of them screaming... so not fun


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## Pax3 (May 2, 2008)

I think it's a whole different story for parents whose kiddos have no and/or only mild caries and those whose kiddos have severe decay at risk of losing teeth. 4 mths ago I never would have woken up my DD either. But I have to say that some of the comments here about how ridiculous it would be to wake up a toddler, etc, and how the original poster's question must have been a joke... they've really seemed rude to me. Then again, I'm on the super bad teeth end and waking up my DS for what we've been through and how she's still recovering from the experience to avoid more of it in the future? Not ridiculous or too extreme to me. I think that's the problem with message boards and general statements. One really has to consider what everyone else has been through. Just a thought. I'm honestly just wishing I'd never posted to this thread in the first place for how snarky (to swipe pp's word) and self-righteous so many have been. And I'm also feeling for the original post which has basically been highlighted as too ridiculous to post by those commenting in that way. Granted, from the follow-on post, the OP doesn't seem bothered, but I can see where others might in the future be dissuaded from posting at all. We should never demean anyone's inquiries on here, regardless of what we ourselves would do or not do or what we think of the question.

But hey, that's jmo. And yes, I'm a bit sensitive right now. 6 1/2 mths pg and having been through the minor form of hell of submitting my daughter to GA. But either way.


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## dancebaraka (Dec 14, 2006)

Never.


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## dawncayden (Jan 24, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Pax3* 
I think it's a whole different story for parents whose kiddos have no and/or only mild caries and those whose kiddos have severe decay at risk of losing teeth. 4 mths ago I never would have woken up my DD either. But I have to say that some of the comments here about how ridiculous it would be to wake up a toddler, etc, and how the original poster's question must have been a joke... they've really seemed rude to me. Then again, I'm on the super bad teeth end and waking up my DS for what we've been through and how she's still recovering from the experience to avoid more of it in the future? Not ridiculous or too extreme to me. I think that's the problem with message boards and general statements. One really has to consider what everyone else has been through. Just a thought. I'm honestly just wishing I'd never posted to this thread in the first place for how snarky (to swipe pp's word) and self-righteous so many have been. And I'm also feeling for the original post which has basically been highlighted as too ridiculous to post by those commenting in that way. Granted, from the follow-on post, the OP doesn't seem bothered, but I can see where others might in the future be dissuaded from posting at all. We should never demean anyone's inquiries on here, regardless of what we ourselves would do or not do or what we think of the question.

But hey, that's jmo. And yes, I'm a bit sensitive right now. 6 1/2 mths pg and having been through the minor form of hell of submitting my daughter to GA. But either way.










I was thinking that the OP was saying this doesn't happen very often. In my case my son has been under GA too, and I wouldn't wake him if he had fallen asleep without brushing. But I'm thinking that would be no more thatn once a month. If it were more often I'd change my brushing habits to right after dinner...which would probably be a good idea anyway since there's so much food on there at that point.


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## Pax3 (May 2, 2008)

It's rare for us, too. The way some of the responses were phrased just really got to me is all, esp as they seemed to belittle a genuine question along with any contrary opinion or action. And her going under is still just so fresh, and the dental work needed just so much more significant than expected.

Anyway, thanks.  And apologies if anyone was offended by what I wrote; my intention was not to belittle anyone in return.


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## becoming (Apr 11, 2003)

Nope, we don't ever wake a sleeping child for any reason in this house, unless it's some sort of emergency. But my kids don't have any dental problems.


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## MCatLvrMom2A&X (Nov 18, 2004)

The thought had honestly never crossed my mind to do that. Even with my kids dental history. It isnt worth the screaming and crying that would happen if I did that.


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