Each morning I remind my 8 year old to brush her teeth, and every night without fail, I send her up to brush them again before bed. But I have a horrible confession to make. I don’t do the same. I am pretty much a slacker, when it comes to my own tooth protection and oral care. I thoroughly brush every morning to prevent cavities, but that’s where my routine usually ends. I’m a random flosser. Once in a while, I will get on a flossing kick to remember to do it every night before bed, and then brush. Then life kicks in again. I get sidetracked, and the clean teeth routine at bedtime goes down the drain.
I guess part of the reason is, I was genetically blessed with relatively good teeth. I’ve never had braces. My teeth are pretty straight, and I am overall happy with my smile.
But over the past few years, I have consumed copious amounts of coffee to keep up with a full time job and our family’s busy lifestyle. The coffee has done a number on my teeth, and yellowing them to a degree I really dislike. I’ve even thought about having my teeth professionally whitened, but I have not made the time, nor have I wanted to spend the money. So now I’m turning over a new leaf. I am vowing to take better care of my teeth and gums, and have an action plan to brighten up my pearly whites. #HappyHealthySmiles are on the way to our house!
For the next two weeks, I will be using Colgate’s Total Advanced products twice daily for tooth protection. I am armed to fight cavities with a new Colgate Total toothbrush that has a unique design to clean not only the teeth and gums, but the cheeks and tongue too. Pretty cool, given that 80% of the bacteria in your mouth are not directly on your teeth. I’m also interested to see the difference the Colgate Total Advanced whitening toothpaste makes fading the current stains on my teeth and preventing new ones, given I don’t see me giving up my coffee habit any time soon.
The final weapon in my arsenal is Colgate’s Total Advanced Pro-Shield mouthwash. The first time I went to use the mouthwash, I braced myself for the stinging burn that was soon to take over my mouth. To my utter amazement there was no burn! The Colgate Total Advanced Pro-Shield is alcohol free. I swished easily for the 30 second interval, and now going forward it won’t be something I will avoid like the plague. What made me even happier, was to buy everything I needed for my challenge at Walgreen’s using my Balance Rewards savings card. In my Google + shop album, I describe some of the great bargains I found while shopping for my Colgate products, but overall I saved $5.70 on my total purchase. Not too shabby! Heading into summer with a little extra change in my pocket is never a bad thing.
Two weeks to #HappyHealthySmiles…yes, please! To keep me on track to a clean mouth, and make sure I stick with my twice a day routine, I will be sharing a before and after picture for all to see via my InTheKitchenKP Instagram account. The picture will go live on June 17th, so make sure you stay tuned for the exciting reveal!
If you want to learn more and Connect with Colgate, you can find them on Twitter @ColgateSmile and on Facebook.
What is your current tooth protection routine?
It’s so easy to get slack about our healthy routines – so good for you holding yourself to the routine. Your teeth will love you for it!
You’re right, Heather. It’s funny how easily we enforce the rules on our kids, but then slack off ourselves. Maybe my children need to start holding me accountable. lol
This is a great post!!
This is a great post!!! I slack off with my dental care as well. I need to do better.
Twitter: MommyTalkShow
Great post.
And I reminder that I need to make a dental appointment for our 3 year old!
I think that sometimes we get so caught up in getting our kids to have good oral health that we just forget that we need to as well. Good luck to you :]