# Is your Toddler swallowing the toothpaste or spitting out properly?



## newmommy (Sep 15, 2003)

I can't get DS to spit it out, he just keeps swallowing it. Should I stop brushing his teeth?


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## pinkmilk (Nov 27, 2005)

Depends on the toothpaste if you should worry about toddler swallowing it or not. I get my dd's toothpaste from a health food store and it is floride free, sugar free and dye free. It's all natural so I don't have to worry about her swallowing it. That way she can take her time learning how to spit and I don't need to stress about it. (personally I believe brushing is highly overrated when all one eats is healthy non-sugar foods).


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## mightymoo (Dec 6, 2003)

DD swallows her toothpaste but we have the 'toddler training' toothpaste by maybe oral-b - doesn't contain any fluoride and says safe to swallow. Not as nice and all-natural as the pp's but I haven't found any natural ones around here.


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## artgoddess (Jun 29, 2004)

My little guy is nearly 2 and brushing his teeth is a favorite activity. I don't think he knows how to spit yet. I have that kind of toothpaste that says it's safe to swallow for him. Did I mention the kid brushes his teeth like 10 times a day?


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## johub (Feb 19, 2005)

My 2 and 3 year olds dont know how to spit yet.
I have both fluoride toothpaste and fluoride free. Because soemtimes we forget to brush their teeth I want them to have soem fluoride, but I only use a tiny amount (you know how they say "pea sized" well maybe 1/4 that size at the most) and dont use it every day. Other days I use the oral b training toothpaste instead to minimize the fluoride they swallow.
Joline


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## dumpsterdivamama (Nov 8, 2004)

my 3.5 yo still doesn't spit either. We use the training toothpaste, I think it has a little flouride in it. I haven't worried about it. Should I?


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## boricuaqueen327 (Oct 11, 2004)

I use a training toothpaste for dd that is fluoride free. It says right on the package that it is safe to be swallowed.


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## bobica (May 31, 2004)

no spitting here. we also use the oral-b training toothpaste & will switch once she learns to spit. maybe between 3 & 4??


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## allismom (Nov 28, 2004)

DD is almost 3. We've used the Gerber training/baby toothpaste to this point that is safe to swallow and the healthiest I could find.

Just this week we've started teaching her to spit. It's a daddy thing, she's starting to get it after a few days. I got her a Tom's all natural kid (orange/mango) toothpaste with a little flouride in it. She has not been exposed to ANY flouride to this point and I thought it's time maybe. Well, since it tastes different, she is resisting it BIG TIME. You'd think it hurts. She loved the apple flavor of the Gerber and would suck on her toothbrush til the taste was gone.

So off to the store we went and I let her pick out Dora toothpaste.........as much I don't want her to have the saccharin in it, I thought it may make the transition smoother. Last night she screamed and pinched her mouth shut and would not try it, just cause it's different. Once we finally got her to let us brush them (about 30 mins later), she was ok with it.


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## Flor (Nov 19, 2003)

I don't use toothpaste on ds. It's just for flavor, right? He doesn't have bad breathe, so he just uses water.


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## hottmama (Dec 27, 2004)

My son is 35 mos. and has been spitting for about 2 mos. now. We use fluoride-free Tom's of Maine kid's toothpaste and will continue to.


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## Honeybee'smama (Mar 26, 2005)

Dd just turned three and still swallows, we use Tom's of Maine with no floride so I don't really worry about. Dh is trying to teach her but she just swallows first then tries to spit what little is left in her mouth.


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## wurzelkind (Oct 8, 2005)

DD (who will turn 2 on thursday) still swallows her toothpaste. It's organic, sugar free, fluoride free, vegan, only natural and it's the same one I had when I was a child - it's strawberry flavored!
















There you go!


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## achintyasamma (Aug 4, 2004)

DS (18 mos) pretty much sucks the orange flavored toothpaste off the brush. Occasionally he makes some attempts to move the brush around. We use Burt's Bee's orange kids toothpaste, which should be available pretty much everywhere.


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## eilonwy (Apr 3, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Flor*
I don't use toothpaste on ds. It's just for flavor, right? He doesn't have bad breathe, so he just uses water.

The toothpaste does serve a purpose other than providing a flavor-- it's designed specifically to help remove sugars (milk sugars in particular) from the teeth & gums.

BeanBean isn't really a toddler, but he spits; he uses a teensy bit of regular toothpaste (*I* actually use a pea sized amount and find that it's plenty, and his teeth are smaller and fewer than my own...







) and ACT flouride rinse (the regular kind; the only difference between the kid's kind and the regular kind is flavor, and I wasn't up for "bubble gum" for any number of reasons







). BooBah (18 months) spits, but most of her toothpaste gets swallowed so she uses the Oral-B Baby toothpaste; I chose to get the baby kind rather than the toddler kind because she doesn't have all of her teeth yet, so we're still washing gums as much as brushing teeth.







When she demonstrates with plain water that she can spit rather than swallow, we'll also switch her to the regular toothpaste.


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## Owen'nZoe (Sep 7, 2005)

Quote:

DS (18 mos) pretty much sucks the orange flavored toothpaste off the brush. Occasionally he makes some attempts to move the brush around.








That sounds like brushing time here!







We use Waleda training paste, which is also safe to swallow.


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## katallen (Jan 4, 2005)

My dd is 38 mo. and she does not spit yet. We were using a flouride free toothpaste but I now use a kids brand toothpaste and just dab a very little bit on, about a quarter to half of a pea sized amount, and let her use it. I talked to her dentist about this and she said that is what she does with her toddler too and as long as it is only a very little bit like that it is safe.


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## lisalou (May 20, 2005)

dd is 28 months and still swallowing. We use Tom's non-fluoride toothpaste. She will pretend to spit though after she's finished swallowing so I suppose it's a step in the right direction.


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## CountryMom2e (Apr 1, 2005)

We use Tom's of Maine Kids' Toothpaste - DS loves it, and it is safe to be swallowed. It is sugar and fluoride free --

http://www.drugstore.com/qxp84603_33...oofy_grape.htm


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