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MNHQ

Share your tips & tricks on keeping your children's teeth healthy for Colgate - chance to win a £250 voucher! *NOW CLOSED*

226 replies

KathrynMumsnet · 30/03/2015 15:15

Colgate has asked us to find out about your thoughts and concerns about dental hygiene and how you keep your children’s teeth healthy.

Here’s what Colgate says: “Did you know that 84% of children and all adults suffer from cavities at some point in their life*?

“Cavities, also known as tooth decay, are the most common chronic disease on the planet. But cavities are preventable and this is why Colgate® has created a breakthrough new anti-cavity toothpaste called Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection plus Sugar Acid Neutraliser™.

“Providing close to double protection against early decay**, Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection is the first and only toothpaste to contain Sugar Acid Neutraliser™ technology, that goes beyond the protection of fluoride, neutralising sugar acids in plaque – the #1 cause of cavities.

“Colgate’s Head of Scientific Affairs, Foti Panagakos comments:
“More and more we’re aware of the increasing levels of sugar in our diets and the negative impact this has on our health. The need for a toothpaste with built in Sugar Acid Neutraliser™ technology has never been so urgent. Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection plus Sugar Acid Neutraliser™ will have a tremendous impact on the oral health of the nation.””

*UK Adult Dental Health Survey 2009, The Health and Social Care Information Centre
** Toothpaste with fluoride alone reduced by 32%
---------------------
Below are a few points to get you started, but feel free to add any other comments you have:

  • What are your top tips for getting your DCs to clean their teeth properly?
  • What kind of excuses do your DCs give you about why they don't need to clean their teeth?
  • How do you teach your DCs about good dental hygiene?
  • Do you worry about your DCs teeth? What do you do to help them keep their teeth healthy?
  • Do you actively try to reduce the sugar intake of your DCs? If so, how?

Fears, tips, whatever it is, we’d love to hear it!

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky Mumsnetter will win a £250 voucher of a supermarket of their choice*.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

*except Aldi and Lidl

OP posts:
MaryDunlop99 · 15/04/2015 09:28

We use music in the background. It's great fun, and the kids look forward to changing the music every day. They can choose a style of music, and then I pick the track. We use a timer along side the music.

bex552 · 15/04/2015 10:09

We brush our teeth in the morning and evening together in the bathroom, since we have started doing this she can't wait to brush tim and gets very excited!

rjsmum11 · 15/04/2015 11:37

My youngest brushes her teeth at the same time as me with her girly electric toothbrush. We don't limit any foods really, moderation works for us.

VickyRsuperstar · 15/04/2015 12:21

I have bought electric brushes for my older children as it gets them interested in brushing their teeth and it has a timer that buzzes after 2 minutes so they know that they have brushed for the right amount of time. The younger ones l supervise carefully and I clean my teeth with them so that they copy and I help them reach all the difficult bits. We make it into a fun exercise.

Where it does go amiss is that the children do like fizzy drinks (only sugar free) and sweet items but I try to limit this, but sometimes it is hard and grandparents often arrive with bags of sweets and when we visit them there are a lot of sugar free fizzy drinks waiting! The dentist said that fizzy drinks are less harmful when drunk with straws as they miss the teeth and sweet treats are better to have at the end of a meal and brush afterwards so we try to limit the damage.
At home I try to get them to mostly drink water and milk.
I like the idea of using a more protective toothpaste to protect their teeth so I will look for the Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection plus Sugar Acid Neutraliser™ when I am next in store as I will do anything I can to protect the kids from lots of fillings.

lorrainej162 · 15/04/2015 12:22

Water with meals and early start with teeth brushing.

swiftythebest27 · 15/04/2015 12:52

My 7yr old daughter is gradually getting better at cleaning her teeth. She was a nightmare until the age of 6 but not she has more understanding of the effects non brushing.

To get my daughter to brush her teeth was to inform her she will have to go to the dentist and have them pulled out if they do bad and also the tooth fair doesnt like dirty teeth and she wont get any pennies for them if they are not clean. The tooth fairy is always watching and knows when she is brushing them well!!

I do worry about her teeth as mine are not the best and I dont want her to end up the same. I only allow fizzy drinks on special occassions and if she has sweets she needs to brush them half an hour later.

lollylaus83 · 15/04/2015 13:03

-What are your top tips for getting your DCs to clean their teeth properly? All clean our teeth together as a family to see how we as adults brush and to make sure that they are doing theirs correctly.
-What kind of excuses do your DCs give you about why they don't need to clean their teeth? Usually more interested in watching cartoons, they dont mind brushing their teeth though so don't generally make excuses.
-How do you teach your DCs about good dental hygiene? Regular trips to the dentist, we talk to them about what might happen if they don't brush theiir teeth.
-Do you worry about your DCs teeth? What do you do to help them keep their teeth healthy? I don't really have concerns about their teeth, they go for regular check ups which are always positive.
-Do you actively try to reduce the sugar intake of your DCs? If so, how? We don't really give them any sugary drinks such as pop or even squash, they prefer milk or water.

Pinktilgate · 15/04/2015 16:08

Somedays I find it difficult to get my son to brush his teeth and others it's very easy! We use various apps and sing songs and dance around to try to make it fun for him, as 2 minutes can seem very long for him! We try to explain to him how important it is to have strong teeth with no cavities, but I really don't think he is that interested. I worry for his teeth as his teeth erupted with flaws in them, and I am forever trying to encourage him to drink plenty of milk and eat cheeses and to limit his sweets. We have a very strict no fizzy drinks rule, and no pure fruit juice either.

piggypoo · 15/04/2015 16:22

We used to pretend we were all alligators and had to stretch to reach our back teeth by opening really wide. Use themed toothbrushes to make brushing fun. After eating anything damaging to the teeth, we say we need to clean our teeth now to get rid of all the bits of food in our teeth, so we don't turn into a big whale with bits in our mouths!

Lauren1983 · 15/04/2015 17:20

I always buy fun colourful toothbrushes and me and my daughter dance as we brush our teeth. I never give my daughter fizzy drinks and watch how much sweet treats she has.

Ryancrawshaw · 15/04/2015 20:19

we make a game of cleaning our teeth, we both clean them together and brush, bursh, brush

littlemisstrivia · 15/04/2015 21:05

We got an electric toothbrush for my little boy to help him clean his teeth better as he would put the manual brush in his mouth but not brush his teeth with it.

Tonkatol · 15/04/2015 22:25

I have four children - three are teenagers (15, 17 & 19) and the fourth is aged 8. My 8 year old loves to use the brushing app when brushing her teeth and she also has an electric toothbrush to help ensure the teeth are cleaned properly. My eldest daughter has always been really good with her teeth and has never had a filling or dental problem. However, my two middle children have been less efficient at brushing their teeth, despite all encouragement over the years. This has resulted in my 17 year old son having a number of fillings in the past few years and my 15 year old daughter not having a brace fitted yet. With my son in particular, his teeth were brushed regularly and kept healthy until he started earning his own money from a paper round - at which point he started buying himself fizzy drinks and eating more sweets and other snacks. He is now paying the price for this and is now fastidious about cleaning, flossing and using mouthwash.

hannahlw85 · 15/04/2015 22:29

At first we made it fun for our son but making it part of routine is what's helped as he see's it as the norm to brush his teeth

beehummingbird · 15/04/2015 22:55

Find a toothpaste they are happy with.

12LuDo · 15/04/2015 23:15

My son is inexplicably terrified of the dentist. I have never found out why, but even mentioning the word sends him hysterical. It has caused problems with his teeth, but I recently tracked down a specialist dentist for nervous patients, which is making a big difference. He is also really sensitive to taste and textures which made finding a toothpaste he would use a challenge. It was worth persevering with, though, because he is happy to brush his teeth now, provided they never discontinue it!

mindmoodmommy · 16/04/2015 10:42

My daughter HAS to do everything herself. This is especially difficult because I know she hasn't learnt to brush her teeth like an adult yet. I let her brush them first (with a character toothbrush and children's toothpaste), then I 'check them' to 'make sure there's no naughty germs hiding in her teeth making them fall out'!

barricade · 16/04/2015 20:32

Show a picture of a super-hero with bright white teeth, that's enough encouragement to promote brushing.
After years of ordinary white toothpaste, children have found multi-coloured toothpaste fascinating (e.g. Aquafresh with their red, white and blue stripes, or Colgate Blue Minty Gel) - that's an incentive to brush, too.
Disclosure tablets, with their red/blue dye, are a great novelty. They're really good at showing up plaque, thereby helping kids target the problem areas.
But the greatest tactic (or trick) --> books with monsters, with their yellow decaying monster teeth, accompanied with a "That's what will happen if you DON'T brush your teeth!" .... gets them wanting to brush at all hours of the day!

Smile
llewejk · 16/04/2015 21:07

we encourage our 2 year old to have a go first encourage her good brushing and then insist that it is mummy or daddy's turn. We have introduced a sticker chart for really good brushing which is working really well for encouragement.

manfalou · 16/04/2015 22:13

The kids don't have fizzy drinks and they're not really into 'sweets'.... they're biscuit kind of people if they're having a treat.

They both brush their teeth with the disney app and then I give the eldest's a good brush (he's 4), for the youngest (2 in 2 days!) I have to stand him in front of the mirror and I brush his teeth whilst he looks in the mirror and copies my mouth actions. Its not the best but its better than nothing x

gnomebulb2 · 17/04/2015 17:08

I think one of the most important things is to supervise cleaning their teeth when they are young and making it a natural part of their daily routine. Make it as fun as possible with a toothbrush they choose. Limit sugary drinks as much as possible and just at mealtimes. Regular dental checkups, and as with all aspects of parenting, set a good example.

MagicCardTrick · 17/04/2015 21:56

My young children are aged 4,4 and 3. I brush their teeth first and they have a go afterwards.

I tell them that I can see the bits of food that they have eaten in their teeth and that I need to brush them clean.

None of them resist brushing, one of them doesn't like the taste of toothpaste so I let him take a little bit off before I brush.

I don't do anything special to teach them about good dental hygiene. The routine of regular brushing is just part of every day life.

I don't worry about their teeth or try to restrict certain foods for dental reasons with the exception of juice which I usually only offer with breakfast and lunch. My kids don't have many sugary foods anyway though.

FPATEL · 20/04/2015 13:42

My toddler likes to run away with her toothbrush every time we start brushing. I now keep two toothbrushes for her, one for her to hold and one for me to brush her teeth with. It's done the trick.
My teeth are unfortunately, not in very good shape, so I use that as an example and motivation for the kids.

BlackeyedSusan · 20/04/2015 20:30

if he cleans his teeth twice a day the tooth fairy leaves him some extra money for his teeth. the tooth fairy will know he has not cleaned his teeth. this is infinitely preferable to the early days when sitting over him with arms pinned to his side tickling his ear to make him open his moth so that his teeth could be cleaned at least once a day. he has asd and spd so teeth cleaning was torture and there was no persuading/bribing a toddler with autism and spd to have his teeth cleaned, the alternative of course being put under general anaesthetic to have teeth removed.

CMOTDibbler · 21/04/2015 16:39

DS has liked looking at pictures of tooth decay and the process (he's like that) and it seemed to increase his urge to brush and use mouthwash properly