Smiley Shen
What do we know
Smiley Shen encourages us to keep our teeth clean and healthy. He tells us that even our first set of teeth, our ‘milk teeth’, are really important. Children use these to learn to eat, chew and speak. They are making the spaces for our adult teeth. If milk teeth are removed prematurely the gap that should be there for the adult teeth may disappear as the neighbouring milk teeth move into the gap. This can block the eruption of the adult permanent teeth. If milk teeth get damaged or decayed it can also damage the adult teeth underneath.
In Birmingham 34.3% of 5-year old children surveyed in 2024 had experience of enamel and/or dentinal decay. This is higher than the West Midlands region and England.
Tooth decay can cause a wide range of physical, practical and emotional issues such as problems with eating affecting the quality of diet, poor speech development, low self-esteem and confidence, and low attainment.
How to brush your teeth
Use a soft motion. Start on the front teeth
Brush the outside of the side and back teeth
Brush the inside of the side and back teeth
Brush the tops of the side and back teeth
Brush the back of your front teeth. Then repeat the process for the top teeth.
Brushing Teeth
It is important to keep our teeth clean. Follow these easy guidelines to make sure it is done correctly.
- Brush teeth for two minutes, twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste (last thing at night before bed and on one other occasion)
- Clean all tooth surfaces and the gum line thoroughly. It should take around 2 minutes.
- Use an age appropriate tooth brush and fluoride containing toothpaste
- Do not rinse with water after brushing, just spit out any excess toothpaste
- Children should be supervised by an adult, when brushing, until at least 7 years of age
It is recommended to start cleaning a babies teeth around 6 months or when the first tooth erupts. Children under 7 should be helped or supervised by an adult to clean their teeth but this does not need to mean they cannot try cleaning their teeth themselves too.
Other Ways to Keep Teeth Healthy
Smiley Shen has advice on how to keep even the smallest teeth healthy.
Reduce intake of sugary foods and drinks
One of the most important things to do is to reduce the frequency and amount of sugary foods and drinks consumed. Each time something sugary is consumed it increases the risk of tooth decay. Keep sugary foods and drinks to a minimum, and have them with meals when they are consumed.
Some foods and drinks are obviously high in sugar such as sweets, chocolate, cake, biscuits, fizzy drinks and juice drinks. However it is also important to look out for hidden sugars especially in foods that seem healthy or are marketed at children such as chocolate cereals, milk shakes, dried fruit and dried fruit products like winders.
Correct use of bottles and cups
Plain water and plain milk are the only drinks that should be offered to children under 5 and it is important to ensure that children are drinking these from the correct bottles and cups for their age. See our bottle to cup information for more details here.
Visiting the Dentist
- NHS dental care for children is free
- Take your child to the dentist when their first milk teeth appear. This will help them become familiar with the environment.. The dentist can advise you on how to best care for your child’s teeth and identify and oral health problems at an early age.
- Take your child for regular dental check-ups, as often as the dentist recommends
- For a list of local NHS dentists visit www.nhs.uk
Smiley Shen says
- Brush your teeth for two minutes, twice a day (remember the 2×2 rule) using a fluoride-containing toothpaste, from 6 months of age or as soon as the first tooth erupts.
- Don’t forget to visit the dentist regularly. Watch out for sugary foods and drinks and use age appropriate drinking vessels!
Oral Health Presenter
The Startwell team have created an oral health resource that you can use with parents/carers. The front has key messages for parents and on the reverse side there Is more information to help the practitioner. These could be used with a group of parents or on a 1:1 basis. Please use the oral health presenter and Smiley Shen activities with children to try and improve the dental health of the children In Birmingham.
Here are two videos to learn more about oral health and Smiley Shen. The first video summaries Smiley Shen’s key messages and the second video gives ideas of oral health activities that children can join in with.
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