Sweet Tooth Strategies: 3 Fun Ways To Help Parents Deal With Their Kids' Dental Issues

Every parent needs help from time to time, and help is here for moms and dads who are struggling with their kids over tooth care. Whether you're a new parent, or you have a reluctant young tooth-brusher in the home, here are 3 tools and tricks to help you help your child practice good oral habits:

Playing games with their teeth.

Head to the internet to find all sorts of children's games that help kids learn about their teeth. Everyone from familiar and beloved characters to educational specialists have developed enjoyable activities to keep kids engaged while they're learning about all the ways they can keep their teeth bright and strong.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) also has a lively interactive website called mychildrensteeth.org to help parents teach their children about dental health and oral hygiene. Here you'll find seasonal activities, downloadable activities, posters, and fun games that enhance your child's knowledge about their own teeth.

Tooth learning sites are an awesome way to build your child's dental awareness for a lifetime of great smiles. When the tooth-related advice is coming from another trusted source besides Mom or Dad, it may help build your authority in your kids' eyes.

Getting them to take their medicine.

Researchers have added another substance to the list of ingredients that are beneficial to teeth. While studying materials that kill cavity-causing germs including Lactobacillus casei, Streptococcus mutans, and Streptococcus sobrinus, they realized that Chinese licorice root was their answer.

Long used for dental health by the locals who live where it's grown, the licorice root is very effective in killing harmful bacteria when prepared correctly. After buying the patent for the specific extract and experimenting with the recipe, a new team decided to use candy to deliver the "medicine."

Since the licorice root recipe must remain in the mouth for at least 5 minutes, lozenges and lollipops were chosen as the perfect ways to keep the licorice root in place long enough for kids and adults to achieve the benefits. If your child is tested and found to have "mouth monsters" like the above bacteria, these new candies may help keep future cavities at bay.

Calculating tooth fairy fees.

When kids begin to lose those first few baby teeth and place them under their pillows to be redeemed by the tooth fairy, parents often wonder what the going rate is to reimburse a child for their loss. A tooth fairy app is now available to help you calculate the amount to leave under the pillow.

You'll find the app and more tooth fairy facts here. For example, did you know that 32% of parents leave $1, while 5% of parents leave a nice crisp $5 bill?

The price for a tooth has gone down slightly in recent years, but more affluent parents are still leaving more hefty premiums for lost teeth than less-wealthy parents. Tooth fairies who hail from the Northeast are the most generous in the nation, making children from New England or New York the lucky ones when it's time to trade in those baby teeth.

You're never parenting alone when it comes to your child's smile. Use the above fun tools, and the knowledge and expertise of your children's pediatric dentist, to develop a plan to ensure your little one a lifetime of dental success.

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