Toothpaste

[danniellabella]

At what age can kids start using toothpaste? DD ate fish at luchtime and her breath was quite smelly tonight. What other things can I use to freshen her breath apart from toothpaste?

She's 17 months old.

[Turkish Delight]

Danni,

My DD is 2 years old and has been brushing her teeth with kids toothpaste for the past few months.

I've taught her to spit it out after brushing. It such a small amount on the toothbrush that i don't think there would be any harm if she ingested some.

[Gigi]

i have been using a children's tooth get by Weleda from the health food shop. i don't feel comfortable using the supermarket toothpaste brands on her at this age.

My dd is nearly three now, and she STILL thinks toothpaste is to be swallowed (not spat out), so i'm keeping on with the Weleda one.

[danniellabella]

thanks. I might get some and just put the tiniest bit on her toothbrush to get her used to it. I usually get her to brush her teeth in the bath at the moment. She loves it, but I think she chews the brush more than she should at the moment.

[MantaRay]

The Colgate kids one is supposed to be ok from 12 months. At the time the boys were that age there was no flouride in the water here and the dentist actually said it would be good for them to swallow some. That's probably less true now that there's flouride in the water as well, but in small quantities it should still be ok.