That’s been my experience too—kids are creative with toothbrushes, no matter what kind you hand them. I’ve found consistency is more important than the brush itself. We tried a fancy electric one, but honestly, brushing together and having a set time worked better for us. If they see you taking care of your teeth, it seems to stick more. The novelty of gadgets wears off fast, but routines seem to last.
That lines up with what I’ve seen, too. We switched to an electric brush for our daughter after her dentist suggested it might help, but honestly, she was way more into the idea than the actual brushing. After a week or two, she was back to rushing through it unless we made it a shared activity. I do wonder if some kids actually get better results with the electric ones, though... maybe it depends on their age or how coordinated they are? Still feels like habit and routine are the big factors.
Still feels like habit and routine are the big factors.
I totally get where you’re coming from, but I have to admit, I’m still not convinced electric brushes are always better for kids. My son’s dentist pushed for it, too, but honestly, he just found the buzzing really weird and got distracted by the noise. We tried a few different brands and even let him pick the colors, but it never really clicked. I guess some kids love the novelty, but for us it just added another thing to stress about.
I do worry a lot about whether he’s brushing “well enough,” especially since he’s not the most coordinated kid. Sometimes I wonder if sticking with a simple manual brush and focusing on making it fun (like singing a silly song or using a timer) might actually work out better in the long run. Maybe it’s less about what kind of brush and more about finding whatever actually gets them to slow down... if only that was easier said than done.
My kid was the same with the electric—he acted like I handed him a live bee. The buzzing just made him giggle or freeze up, and then nothing got brushed anyway. We went back to manual and honestly, it’s more about the battle to get him to brush at all than what’s in his hand. Does anyone else just give up and do the “let me check your teeth” song and dance every night? I swear, half the time I’m brushing my own teeth just to prove it’s not torture. Maybe I’m missing something, but is there really a magic brush out there that actually makes kids WANT to brush?
We’ve had the same struggle. My daughter hated the noise and vibration, so we switched back to manual too. I’ve tried letting her pick her own brush, but honestly, it’s still a nightly negotiation. Does anyone actually see a difference in how clean their kid’s teeth get with electric versus manual? I feel like technique matters more than the brush itself.
