February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and First 5 LA is celebrating with 28 days full of smile-worthy fun!
My husband and I encourage our daughter to use good oral hygiene on a daily basis. She is three years old and she’s had two dentist visits. So far everything looks great and she seems to be comfortable at the dentist office. One part of our nighttime routine is to brush before we read a book and go to bed. We talk about proper brushing techniques and we involve her in applying toothpaste on her brush, brushing her own teeth and spitting. Do you have a stubborn toddler? Try buying a few character brushes that blink or make music. These products might provide motivation and make brushing a lot more fun.
Our friends over at First 5 LA are promoting Children’s Dental Health Month. Their parent resources website, Ready. Set. Grow!, offers Dental Care Events (free or low cost!), tips and more. Sign up on their email list and receive a free children’s toothbrush!
First 5 LA sent over the following press release regarding their Oral Health Campaign to help families in the LA area. I was surprised what the study revealed about cases of tooth decay in Los Angeles.
– Tee
TOOTH DECAY A CRITICAL PROBLEM AMOUNG YOUNG CHILDREN IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY
First 5 LA Promotes Children’s Dental Health Month LOS ANGELES—— An epidemic of tooth decay exists among young children living in Los Angeles County’s poorest communities, according to a recent study on children’s dental health. Because the problem is so critical, First 5 LA is teaming up with dental care providers throughout February, Children’s Dental Health Month, to help promote good oral health care. Each February, the American Dental Association sponsors National Children’s Dental Health Month to raise awareness about the importance of oral health.
The study, which was commissioned by First 5 LA along with other partners, revealed that some 72 percent of children under age 5 in underserved communities have untreated cavities. This is more than double the national average among youngsters in comparable age and income groups.
“Tooth decay is the most common chronic disease of childhood, occurring up to five times more frequently than asthma and also a leading cause of absence from school,” said Evelyn V. Martinez, chief executive officer of First 5 LA. “Untreated, it can result in serious infections in other parts of the body.” Though tooth decay is the most common preventable illness, many youngsters do not visit the dentist regularly or get the dental care they need to keep their teeth and gums healthy.
“As a result, they are infected with dental diseases that can hurt the development of their permanent teeth, lead to painful conditions and threaten their overall health and well-being,” Martinez said. “Many parents wait until their child is age 3 or 4 before they have a first dental visit, but the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children see a dentist by their first birthday.”
First 5 LA is also advocating good dental health for expectant mothers because in addition to tooth decay, gum disease can also pose a serious health threat to them. In 2009, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry announced new oral health guidelines for pregnant women to assist them in maintaining healthy teeth and gums during their pregnancy and into the early stages of motherhood. “Gum disease may cause serious health concerns for pregnant women,” said Dr. Steven Uranga McKane, clinical director of The Children’s Dental Center of Greater Los Angeles. “If you are pregnant or are considering pregnancy, discuss any concerns you may have with your dentist.”
For more information on children’s dental health care visit: www.readysetgrowla.org/oralhealth.
First 5 LA offers tips on the best way to take care of a young child’s teeth:
Birth to 12 months
• Good dental habits should begin before the first tooth appears. After feedings, gently brush your baby’s gums using water on a baby toothbrush that has soft bristles. Or wipe them with a clean washcloth.
• Schedule your baby’s well-child visits. During these visits, your child’s doctor will check your baby’s mouth.
12 to 24 months
• Brush your child’s teeth two times a day using water on a baby toothbrush with soft bristles. Best times are after breakfast and before bed.
• Make sure your child doesn’t drink more than one small cup of juice each day and only at mealtimes.
• Consult with your child’s dentist or doctor about sucking habits. Sucking too strongly on a pacifier, a thumb or fingers can alter the shape of the mouth; how the top and bottom teeth line up.
• Schedule a dental checkup.
About First 5 LA
First 5 LA, a child advocacy and grant-making organization, was created by California voters to invest Proposition 10 tobacco tax revenues, it supports programs for improving the lives of children from prenatal through age 5 in Los Angeles County. First 5 LA champions health, education and safety causes concerning young children and families.
GIVEAWAY: That’s IT Mommy readers will receive 5 sets of books and dental kits from First 5 LA. Kit includes the book Brush, Brush, Brush! (Rookie Toddler) a kid’s toothbrush, fun floss dispenser, training toothpaste and a fun bag with dental tips. Ends 2/21/11
REQUIRED MANDATORY ENTRY – Was getting your kids to brush their teeth harder than you expected? What are your tips for making the process more fun? Let us know!
Optional Bonus Entries: Please, leave each extra entry in a separate comment. (Entries are worth 1 comment unless otherwise noted)
- Follow First 5 LA on Twitter
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- Subscribe to our RSS Feed or email (2 extra – 2 separate comments #1, #2)
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- Enter another one of our current giveaways. (3 extra – 3 separate comments #1, #2, #3)
- Tweet about this giveaway (Copy – Celebrate National Children’s Dental Health Month w/ @ThatsITMommy & @First5LA. Win a kid’s dental kit http://thatsitmommy.com/?p=9514) – come back daily and leave us the link to the tweet (1 extra)
This giveaway will run through midnight on Feb. 21, 2011 (PST). Winner will be chosen using Random.org from all valid entries and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to contact us before another winner is chosen. Giveaway is open to U.S. residents only (18+).*
* That’s IT Mommy did not receive any form of compensation for this review. We’re sharing this important topic with our readers. This will in no way sway our opinion of the product or service. The review is in our own words and is our opinion. Your results and opinions may differ.
165 comments
I still fight with my 5-yr-old about proper brushing, he’s just not into it. I’ve tried fun brushes and toothpaste, but still… the novelty wears off too quickly. He actually has his 1st dentist appointment today… hoping she can tell him stuff to help the habit!
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I have a hard time with brushing my 5 year old son’s teeth every night on the other hand my 20 month old daughter loves to brush her teeth. LOL. I like your idea of using a brush that plays music that might get him more excited about it. 🙂
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it was definately harder than i thought..i use cool toothbrushes to help..but it still requires my intervention
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It was easy at first because it was new and then a little difficult with the “why do I have to brush my teet phase” and now at 5 it has has gotten easier.
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I’ll usually give my grand-daughter a sticker. She loves stickers!
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I don’t know yet if it will be hard to get my daughter to brush her teeth b/c she’s due in May 🙂
it’s a day by day thing… some days my daughter loves it, some days she insists on doing it herself and some days she flat out refuses so i have to pin her arms down and do it real fast:( you never know what you’re going to get with her!
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There were times my 2 kids would balk at brushing their teeth. They were pretty good after I made a chart where they would get a tiny gold star after they brushed and as each week was completed, they would get scratch ‘n sniff stickers as rewards. They were a big hit with them. They’re both grown now. I’d love to win this for my 5 yr old granddaughter. 🙂
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It wasn’t hard to get my son to brush his teeth. He would actually cry if I didn’t brush them when he thought they should be. However, now that he is seven, it’s like the worst thing in the world for him to do! So the bedtime brush I drag go in there with him and make absolutely sure they are good and clean 🙂
When we were first teaching them, it was new and fun. After the novelty wore off…they didnt enjoy it so much. I found that when I let them choose the toothpaste and toothbrush (usually with their favorite character on it) they’d brush more often. Thanks!
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It wasn’t hard to get them to brush. It was hard to get them to do it right. They learned to brush better when it was made into a game, and they would let you in all the way to show them how to do it.
Yes, it was and is a challenge. We like to use colorful toothbrushes to encourage brushing and having a routine really helps too!
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it was easy – they love to brush their teeth. I have them pick out their favorite toothpaste and brushes
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I have to tell my children to brush their teeth everyday or it won’t happen and they are old enough to know better. I’ve bought them musical toothbrushes to try to make it more fun.
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In the beginning it was hard but we made it special by getting them light up brushes or spin brushes and they pick their own special toothpaste. This makes it more fun.
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We have one kid that likes to brush and the other that doesn’t. I’ve learned that letting them pick their own toothbrushes helps.
Yes, getting my children to brush their teeth was def. harder than I thought it would be.
I have purchased glow in the dark toothbrushes, their favorite characters still they still don’t care for it.
I have tried to get my two boys to make a contest about who could get to the bathroom first to brush their teeth- that worked at first then they started pushing the other one down to get to the bathroom first and we had to stop that one. Still looking for great ideas though.
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My kids love to brush. My tip is to get toddlers flouride free toddler toothpaste.
And just as an aside, anyone reading, please keep adult toothpaste out of reach of children. We had a child swallow some once and it was really a big deal!
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The best thing we did to get our kids to brush was start young. Now that they’re 5 and 3 we let them do it themselves after we have our turn doing it. They are happy to get to do it themselves.
It was easy at first when it was still new and fun. Now we struggle at times with our older ones to not rush through it too quickly.
it wasn’t hard at first but as my child got older, it became much more of a source of conflict. we have to use threats of cavities to get him to brush his teeth. the only thing that made it easier on us was to explain to him what would happen if he didn’t brush his teeth. the fun tooth brushes and singing silly songs didn’t work for us. neither did letting him brush his own teeth.
My kids love brushing their teeth sometimes its hard to get them to put their brushes down so they can sleep. We have colored floss and they have own personalized tooth brush.
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my granddaughter hums a song while she brushes. When song is done she is done!
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Actually, both of my kids love brushing their teeth. I think it has to do with the fact that they view it as a grown-up thing to do – the whole family brushes together. We even have a hard time getting the brush away from our toddler!
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she’s only one and she still fights
my kids have actually been pretty good about teeth brushing
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I have 4 kids and each was different…some LOVE to brush and it was easy to get them to, but others hated it. We just keep consistantly having them all do it everyday and hopefully sometime it will get easier for some of them!
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we just made it a routine from the beginning, it’s part of the routine so it’s not that hard to do!
No, it wasn’t. I bought good fruit flavored non fluoride toothpaste and said I would brush first then he could. He loves it and loves to be a big boy and do it himself.
It was much harder but we reward with stickers which works for now!
Getting them started was easy.. keeping them on a regular schedule is difficult.
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Let’s face it, none of us really love going to the dentist—especially our children. But proper dental care is critical to your child’s overall health and well-being.