Creating Better Smiles With The Listerine Oral Care Challenge

Confession time: my family's oral care routine isn't the best it could be. Oh sure, we all brush - I'm lucky to have two little girls who don't mind brushing their teeth - but it isn't always as often as it should be. The nighttime brushing always happens, but they often forget in the rush of the morning. My older daughter has several permanent teeth already in, but still doesn't floss or use mouthwash. I try to feel good that at least they do brush, but I know that brushing alone can miss the germs in 75% of your mouth.

I'm a faithful brusher thanks to my sensitive teeth, but only occasionally use mouthwash and hardly ever floss. My husband is faithful with the mouthwash but also never flosses. It's not that we want to neglect our mouths - but when you're busy it's easy for some steps to be left behind in the process. We only get one set of teeth, though, so we could all do better at creating good habits when it comes to caring for our teeth and gums.

Recently I was invited by Mom Central to join the Listerine Oral Care Challenge. The challenge involves committing to a twice-daily routine of brushing, flossing and rinsing for the entire family for three weeks. Listerine provided us with a kit including new toothbrushes, floss, and mouthwash for kids and adults. We also have a chart to keep track of our progress and keep the kids motivated. Chances are I'll throw in some prizes for the kids so they don't slack off, too.

Our Listerine Challenge kit

My younger daughter is still too young for mouthwash, so she'll be participating in a modified version by committing to brushing twice a day. It'll likely be tough to convince my older daughter (who has sensory issues related to autism) to go beyond brushing, but she likes the characters on the kids' mouthwash bottles, so I'm hoping she'll give it a try. If we do it together as a family, she might be more likely to copy what the adults are doing, too.

We'll be starting our challenge on December 1 and finishing just before Christmas. I'm hopeful that we can create new family habits that stick and have dazzling teeth to show off at all of our holiday parties! Check back in three weeks to see how well we did, and if you're concerned about your family's oral care routine, join in and start your own challenge!

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.