I’m honestly at my wits’ end trying to get my toddler off the bedtime bottle. Every time I try, it’s just a meltdown and zero sleep for anyone. I keep hearing how it’s “crucial” to stop because of tooth decay, but like, is it really that instant? I brush her teeth before bed but she still wants her milk after. Anyone else stuck in this loop or found a trick that actually works?
Honestly, I’m still kind of haunted by my own bottle habit as a kid. My parents let me keep the nighttime milk for way too long, and by the time I was in elementary school, I needed all kinds of dental work—cavities and then braces later, which I’m still dealing with now. I get the struggle though. My mom tried everything short of hiding the bottles, and it was meltdown city for weeks. I don’t think tooth decay happens overnight, but my orthodontist said it’s more about the long-term risk. If you’re brushing after the bottle, that’s better than nothing, but I remember my dentist saying the sugar can still linger... Ugh. It’s tough.
Yeah, I had a similar deal—my parents let me have a bottle at night way past toddler age. Honestly, I didn’t even realize it was an issue until I had like, four cavities at my first real dentist visit. The sugar just sits there while you sleep. Even brushing after doesn’t always get everything, especially if you’re half-awake. Kicking the habit was rough, but my teeth definitely thanked me later.
That’s honestly one of my biggest worries. I’m super careful about brushing, but I still get anxious thinking about stuff lingering on my teeth overnight. Even with rinsing, I’m never sure if it’s enough. Reading your story makes me want to double-check my routine, just in case.
I totally get the anxiety around this. I’m still paranoid about my own teeth after years of dental issues, and I honestly wish I’d been more careful as a kid. My parents let me have milk at bedtime for way too long, and I ended up with a bunch of cavities in my baby teeth. Even now, I sometimes wonder if that set me up for more problems later.
Brushing right before bed is good, but if there’s milk after, it’s like all that effort goes out the window. I’ve read (and heard from my dentist) that it’s not instant, but regular exposure to milk sugars overnight doesn’t give teeth a break to recover. Even rinsing doesn’t seem to clear it all out, especially with the way milk kind of coats everything.
It’s such a struggle, though—I remember my niece put up a huge fight when my sister tried to stop her bottle at night. They ended up switching to water in the bottle, which was a rough transition, but after a few nights she just stopped asking. Not saying it’s easy, just that sometimes the short-term pain is worth avoiding the long-term hassle (and dental bills). I still get nervous about whether I’m doing enough; it’s exhausting.
