Hi moms, I sent my husband to the store and toddler training toothpaste was on the list. Of course he comes home with the wrong stuff lol. He bought kids regular flouride toothpaste. Is it ok to give a 2.5 year old toothpaste with flouride in it? We normally use the flouride-free stuff. I didn't know at what age its ok to graduate to the flouride paste. Thanks!
I'm not a big fan of fluoride for any age.
That being said, I now take my kids to the dentist every three months for a cleaning (no fluoride treatments though).
Good luck.
My daughter's pediatric dentist had us start her on flouride toothpaste at 2 years old. She wasn't able to spit at first. He told me to basically dip the tip of the toothbrush in the opening of the toothpast tube. Basically just enough to get an itty bitty amount of toothpaste on the brush. Swallowing a little flouride is ok, it's actually added to most city waters. You just don't want him to swallow a lot. Start teaching him how to spit.He'll be a pro in no time :D
I think on some of the tooth paste tubes it says to contact poison control if they swallow more than the amount used for brushing.
Check out Tom's of Maine. I think they have a kids fluoride-free toothpaste. Dunno what age its okay. I think even adults shouldn't be using that stuff.
Don't use the flouride toothpaste until the child can spit it out. It's not good for them to swallow it.
For my oldest I waited until she could spit it out. However, the dentist has said my two year old should be using it now b/c the toddler toothepaste wasn't cleaning her teeth and she had some stains on them. I just use a tiny amount on the brush.
I agree with the other posters that fluoride isn't good for anyone!
That said, if you're set on it, the American Dental Association recommends all children use fluoride toothpaste from the start. Begin with a tiny amount and use more when your child can spit it out.
Nobody in my house uses flouride toothpaste. You might want to research it. It is toxic waste. That's why you can't swallow it. And, research shows that it has no significant impact on the health of teeth. The net difference is less than one cavity per person. You might want to google it to see what you can find. Make sure you daughter knows that it is dangerous to swallow it.
As long as your little one knows how to brush w/o swallowing the paste you're okay. I would put a very minimal amount on the toothbrush though (just enough to see it on the bristles) and let that be it.
Flouride can cause stomach problems so you want to make sure your child will not swallow the toothpaste. When I run out, I just use the plain brush with water. It still gets the stuff off the teeth.
I started both of my kids on fluoride toothpaste when they turned 3. It all depends on the child's ability to spit the toothpaste out. Fluoride toothpaste is better for their teeth, so the sooner the better. They will get sick if they swallow too much of it, so like I said make sure he/she can spit it out. Good luck!
wait till your kid can spit out in the sink.
We took my daughter to the dentist last month (she turned 3 in Aug) and they said she can use regular flouride toothpaste now, but ensure she does not eat it. She loves the flavor of any toothpaste and always wants to 'taste' it before she brushes. I keep telling her if she swallows it/eats it she may get sick. Depends on how mature your child is and if your child will not eat it. If so, go ahead and let them use it!
Our pediatric dentist recommended we stay with the flouride free toothpaste until age 5. She said that before that, they really don't understand or are able to not swallow and too much flouride can cause discoloration of the permanent teeth. We get a flouride treatment every 6 months and practice spitting with our 4 year old so he will "get it" when the dentist recommends we switch.
If you are in the Greater Cincinnati area there is floride in our water. It's been there for years. They add it in.
