From talking with moms and working with dentists all over the world, we’ve come to believe that how we care for our mouths can be just as important as the products we use.

We know how hectic and challenging mornings and evenings — brushing times — can be for parents. So we’ve started to explore how we can help families form good routines and healthy habits that make this time less stressful. We’re working with experts in dentistry, child development and parenting to provide you with advice, tips and tools that we hope will make a real difference to the health of your family’s teeth.

Dr. Abi Gewirtz is the first in what will be a line of experts bringing you this advice. She’s a mom and an expert in her field; and we’ve asked her to share her thoughts on family routines and behaviors with you. Let us know what you think!

My tips and advice fall into three areas:

1. Helping children maintain healthy routines — how setting a routine, giving good directions and keeping control can help children with everything from brushing to bedtime to chores
2. Understanding what motivates children — sharing some thoughts about how research suggests children learn and the role of parents in motivating them
3. 5 positive parenting principles — although every family and child is different, throughout my life as a parent and in my professional work I’ve noticed 5 principles of positive parenting that really do work.

I hope you find my thoughts helpful. But I also want to hear what works for you — so please, drop me a line and let me know your questions, challenges and solutions for better morning and evening routines!