Remember a couple of weeks ago how I told you about the Listerine Healthy Habits for a Lifetime Oral Care Challenge that the awesome ladies at The Motherhood set up?
Well they sent me a big awesome box of oral care products for both kids and adults to try–mouthwash, smart rinse, dental floss, toothbrushes–as well as some educational materials.
The challenge was to get everyone in the house brushing and rinsing twice a day. While we all participated, this whole challenge was really geared at teaching the kiddos some good practices for life.
Now my kids are 8 and almost 11, so getting them to brush regularly takes a different set of skills than with a toddler or little kid.  Princess feels herself far too mature to do something like sing a song to make sure she is brushing long enough! (which by the way TOTALLY works on the younger set!)
Of course the fine folks at Listerine didn’t leave me hanging–they provided a sheet full of tips for a “Lifetime of Smiles”
(Note: just click on that arrow thingy in the right corner and it should open up in Google Docs for you! or just go to the page on Walmart.com that has both the adult & kids tipsheets to print!)
So what DID I do? First I let them each pick a toothbrush and a bottle of Smart Rinse. Buddy picked the blue Phineas and Ferb brush and rinse-that was pretty much a no brainer. I wasn’t sure if Princess would go for the pink Barbie items-she’s in that “I’m too old for. . . ” stage. But she thought the rinse sounded better in bubblegum flavor than the other ones, so she grabbed the Barbie toothbrush because it matched.
We hadn’t used a rinse before, so we had a little chat about how the cool squeeze measurer bottle thingys worked and I emphasized with them that you DO NOT DRINK the rinse, that it is healthy for the outside of your teeth but not to be consumed. Luckily since we are regulars at the dentist and they’ve had fluoride treatments every six months for several years they just rolled their eyes at me like “I KNOW mom!” (well, maybe that was just Princess. She’s practicing to be a teenager you know.)
I did what I always do-I reminded them to brush in the morning and after dinner. I’m really bad at remembering things, and we normally don’t allow snacks after dinner, so we’ve always had the kids brush their teeth after dinner rather than before bed-ever since they were small. Because of that we keep their tooth brushing stuff in the downstairs bathroom instead of up by their bedrooms.
Hey-it works!
Princess commented about a day in “I can see why they sent you this rinse stuff-it makes brushing your teeth so much more fun. I actually want to do it.”
Buddy–my engineer–especially liked using the special squeeze to measure bottle.
Plus you get to spit. In the sink. In a big huge stream. What 8 yr old boy wouldn’t think THAT was fun?
So how did it all work out? Well I sat the kids down this afternoon and asked them what they thought-and insisted that they tell me the truth and not just what they thought the company might want to hear (hey-these guys have been involved in product reviews since they were little!).
They both said that they felt like the rinse made their teeth feel more “clean” and that they liked the taste. Princess insisted that the rinse actually made brushing more fun.
How can you argue with that? Next on the toothcare agenda is to get them flossing on a regular basis. . . one thing at a time eh?
As for me-well I already brushed regularly. I decided to try out the Zero Care Mouthwash because I thought the alcohol free version would be less harsh that the regular Listerine. Let me tell you-it might not have the alcohol, but it has a very strong and tingly minty-ness. I felt like I could have eaten an entire clove of garlic and then rinsed with that Zero care and my breath would have been perfectly fresh! Also as a side benefit, if you rinse with the Zero Care after dinner, you aren’t going to feel like messing up your nice clean-for-the-night teeth with a bowl of chocolate ice cream or any other little temptation!
The other product I really thought was cool was the Reach Total Care Dental Floss. Sure. It’s floss. It was minty, fresh, didn’t shred and if I flossed mid day it gave me a minty feeling. Plus it has these micro grooves that are supposed to get more plaque off than regular floss-I guess my dentist would be the one to notice that!
So what have you found that works to get your kids (and yourself) to brush regularly?
****This is a sponsored post****
Disclosure: I received products and compensation from Johnson & Johnson and The Motherhood as part of my participation in the Oral Care Challenge. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this post are my own.
My kid is at the age where Barbie is still cool. So just the fact that it has Barbie on it makes her want to use the rinse. (Which is good, because she has teeth that are close together and was getting cavities in between them — even with flossing — before the dentist recommended she start using a mouthwash rinse.)
My kiddos brush pretty regular, Amber who is 8 does not like adult toothpaste so as long as it is mild (regular crest) or in a pink tube she is open. They love flossers, which really help with flossing and they love the Smart Rinse, we have used that one periodically.
I have used singing toothbrushes, light up toothbrushes, water picks. James who is 12 likes to brush to smile at girls, that is his motivation.
Thank you for the information about the enhanced floss. I use a countdown to my next teeth-cleaning appointment to keep myself motivated. I hate to leave the dental hygienist with an exhausted or cramping arm, and because I drink a lot of tea that is a risk.
I get those floss pick things and keep a few near the TV and computer so while we are watching a movie or surfing the net I can floss. I am much more apt to do that than stand in the bathroom flossing for 5 minutes.