You know brushing young children’s teeth two times a day with safe and healthy fluoride toothpaste is proven to help protect little teeth from tooth decay. You know brushing at least once during the child care day is important. A Child Care Toothbrushing Policy can bring all of your expertise together in one document and be an invaluable tool in your work to enhance the oral–and overall–health of the children in your care! Wondering where to start? Help is a mouse-click away!
Developed by the NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center in collaboration with the NC Division of Public Health Oral Health Section, the new sample Child Care Toothbrushing Policy describes best practices for adding toothbrushing in the child care setting. Available in both English and Spanish, it is designed to be adapted by individual child care centers and family child care homes to meet their unique needs. The sample policy covers everything from parent permission to the correct amount of fluoride toothpaste for young children by age, as well as background information on the effect of painful cavities on young children’s health and development. Click to see the sample policy.
After you complete it, your new policy should be shared with staff, parents, and/or guardians, and a copy should be kept on file for each child. “We are excited about our new Child Care Toothbrushing Sample Policy, which can be changed to meet the unique needs of each child care program,” said Jacquie Simmons, MScPH, Project Director of NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center at UNC-CH Gillings School of Global Public Health. “We think it will be a useful tool for child care facilities. We recommend that staff take the free Toothbrushing in Child Care training course before implementing a toothbrushing program and policy.”
To take the training course and receive continuing education credit, contact Emily Horney of the NC Division of Public Health Oral Health Section at Emily.Horney@dhhs.nc.gov. To take the training course without credit or as a refresher, visit Tooth Talk.
For information and support on toothbrushing, contact a local Child Care Health Consultant or visit the NC Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center.
Curious about what successful toothbrushing in child care looks like? See the step-by-step guides for child care infant brushing and preschool group brushing in both English and Spanish at Toothtalk.
