Brand New Dad » Month By Month » 10 Months Old » Make Teeth Cleaning Fun

At 10 months of age, babies are too young to clean their own teeth. But you can start now to make teeth cleaning a lifelong daily habit. Your baby learns most from watching you. Set a good example by brushing your own teeth after every meal. Let your baby see you doing it. Then clean your baby's teeth by using a wet, clean, soft washcloth to remove germs. Do this after every meal. Save toothpaste until your baby is older.

Make teeth cleaning fun. Make a puppet from an old, clean white sock. Draw eyes and mouth on the bottom near the toe. Pull the sock over your hand. Pretend to clean the puppet's teeth. Let your baby try. Or use a stuffed animal.

Sing a song while cleaning. Make up your own words. Or sing these words to the tune of "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush."

This is the way we clean our teeth, clean our teeth, clean our teeth. This is the way we clean our teeth so early in the morning. (This is the way we clean our teeth before we go to bed.)

Use teeth cleaning for learning. Point to your teeth and say, "Teeth." Ask, "Where are your teeth?" Talk about cleaning. Use words like brush, clean, tongue, top, bottom, back, front. Your baby will need to know these words when she starts cleaning her own teeth.

Make teeth cleaning a pleasant experience. That way your baby will want to try it on her own.

White spots on your baby's teeth could be a sign of decay. If you see white spots, call your dentist.

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