A few weeks ago, I talked about the Listerine Oral Care Challenge that my family was participating in. For 2 weeks, my husband and I committed to brush, floss, and rinse twice a day for two weeks together with our kids. Kids learn by imitation was the premise and 2 weeks of a good routine should establish life long habits.
We did pretty good at first, although my husband wasn’t really on board with the idea of gathering around the sink together to brush, floss, and rinse. It may have been overkill anyway, so I ended up doing most of the challenge on my own with our kids.
Before the challenge, this was our routine:
- Floss at bedtime every night
- Brush at morning for 1-2 minutes and night for 2 minutes
- Rinse at bedtime most nights
After the challenge, this is our new routine:
- Floss at bedtime every night, floss in the morning most of the time
- Brush at morning and night for 2 minutes – no exceptions
- Rinse at morning and bedtime every time
During the Listerine Oral Care Challenge, my kids enjoyed using the cool themed toothbrushes from Reach and Listerine.We also used Reach floss.
ReachDental Floss:
I especially liked the Reach Total Care with Whitening, it’s my new favorite floss with minty freshness! My kids have never used regular dental floss, so it was sort of a challenge to get use to it. They normally use the picks with the floss on the ends. Honestly, it worked with my almost-7 year old but my almost-5 year old couldn’t do it on her own and it was difficult to do with mom or dad. We did have good success with the Reach Access Flosser, it has the feel and reach of a toothbrush, making it easy to help younger kids. Flossing daily is now 100% with my family and doing it twice daily is becoming the norm. (It is just so hard on days when we are running late and the bus is coming any minute!)
Listerine
I always thought of mouth washes and rinses as something extra to do for fresh smelling breath. I knew that products like Listerine were good for you but couldn’t handle the taste so I never used Listerine and only used products that freshens your breath periodically.
For my kids, they have used a fluoride rinse, but that is it. I didn’t know that rinsing twice daily gives your mouth 24 hours of protection against plaque and gigivitis germs. Listerine is the only brand that gets the ADA Seal of Acceptance.
Elijah, my almost-7 year old had no issues of switching to the Phineas and Ferb Mouthwash. He liked it.
Elizabeth, my almost-5 year old said the Barbie Mouthwash was “too spicy”. She didn’t like Phineas and Ferb either. So, we just had her “try” it with a little bit. We only asked that she use it and could spit it right out if she wants. Little by little, it became the routine and her time of rinsing increased. Now, after 2 weeks, she is using the Barbie AND the Phineas and Ferb mouthwash for 40-50 seconds at a time!
I’m such a baby too, like I said but I made myself use the Listerine Total Care Zero. The first couple times, I didn’t like it, even though it wasn’t nearly as intense as the Cool Mint Listerine. After a few days, it was no big deal. In fact, now, if I skip a morning or night of Listerine, my teeth and mouth don’t feel clean. I actually like the 24 hours of protection that Listerine gives me. I would have never believed that before this challenge. My husband likes the Cool Mint Listerine better.
Listerine Oral Care Challenge Results
Taking the Listerine Oral Care Challenge seriously gave us very positive results. Instead of flossing and rinsing being “extra” things that should be done, now flossing and rinsing are part of our every day routine. There is no skipping out or second guessing the importance of these elements of good oral care. I’m glad we did this and know our teeth will benefit from it now and in the future!
Now, if only we could get my son’s dangling tooth to come out. It’s driving him (and us) crazy!
For more information on Listerine products, visit the Listerine website.
I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Listerine and received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
