Importance of Oral Hygiene and How to Make it Fun for Your Child

Last Updated on September 22, 2020 by Ellen Christian

Teaching kids about the importance of oral hygiene can be challenging. Children don’t necessarily understand long term goals and the fact that the care they give their teeth as children will impact the condition of their teeth in middle age. I have found that teaching kids about the importance of oral hygiene is best done by making oral hygiene simple and fun while they are younger.  Once they are older, it will have become a habit that they will hopefully carry with them through the rest of their life.  Here are a few ways that I’ve found that make teaching kids about the importance of oral hygiene easier.

Importance of oral hygiene

• Create a chart to track their progress and then offer a reward when they meet their goal.
• Choose toothpaste and oral rinses with flavors made for children.  Full strength adult products can often be too strong for children.
• Choose a toothbrush intended for a child.  Not only are they smaller for a smaller mouth, they can be purchased featuring your child’s favorite character.
• Set a good example for your children by following good oral hygiene practices yourself.
• Visit a pediatric dentist regularly so your child is used to them. Ours has a fun treasure box where the kids can choose treasures after their exam.
• Flossing can be difficult for children to manage on their own.  Plackers Kids Flossers are made especially for children.

Plackers Kids Flossers use Plackers’ patented Super Tuffloss and fluoride coating with an easy to grip handle that has been created especially for smaller hands. These kid friendly flossers have a mixed berry flavor and are available in several fun colorful shapes including orange monkeys, red crabs, yellow dolphins and blue elephants.  Your child simply holds the handle of the Plackers Kids Flosser between their fingers and gently slides the floss in back and forth, up and down motion alongside their tooth.  They repeat between each tooth and then discard after use. Plackers Kids Flossers contain 48 fun dental flossers in each bag.

Plackers also makes flossers for the whole family.  Other types of flossers include Twin-Line featuring two parallel lines of floss, Micro Mint in a fresh mint taste, Gentle Slide for tight teeth and sensitive gums, and OrthoPick designed specifically for people with braces.

Now through June 2013, retailers including Walgreens and Walmart will carry specially marked packages of Plackers flossers – each containing a chance to win. In addition to the $40,000 grand prize, Plackers will also offer 10 first-prize winners an Apple^® iPad^®1.  Fifty second-prize winners will each receive an Apple^® iPod nano^®, and 500 third-prize winners will get a year’s supply of innovative Plackers flossers.

One of my readers will win a a family flosser giveaway that includes one full-size package each of Micro Mint, Twin Line, GentleSlide, Orthopick (for people with braces), Plackers Kids flossers (in fun animal shapes with tasty berry-flavored floss) and more, plus a reusable travel toiletries kit. (Total prize value is approximately $25.) One of the flosser packs will be specially marked so you have a chance to win the $40Kgrand prize!