How To Use The Tooth Fairy to Teach Your Kids Good Oral Hygiene

Everyone can recollect times from our youth when the Tooth Fairy traded money for our precious baby teeth.

It is a famous practice for American families, and the Tooth Fairy is additionally a great tale for parents to use when trying to influence their children to take better maintenance of their teeth. Vicki Lanksy, a writer, found that children were even more dedicated to keeping up great dental hygiene if their parents convinced them that the Tooth Fairy gave more for immaculate teeth. But did you know that the Tooth Fairy that we are familiar with is predominately unique to Americans? Furthermore—unlike Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny—the origins of this particular practice are rather unidentified.

How Do You Become A Tooth Fairy Consultant?

Rosemary Wells, an instructor from the Northwestern University Dental School, chose to do a bit of research on the strange inceptions of the Tooth Fairy. What she encountered was that the Tooth Fairy was not as ancient as was actually assumed. The first oral proof of this fairy appeared close to the turn of the 20th century, and the first image in print happened in 1927. Wells carried on her study for many years and she actually organized a nationwide questionnaire that involved roughly 2,000 mothers and fathers. Among the most significant of Wells’ accomplishments is the museum that she has opened that displays all of her findings and research. And where can you find this museum? It’s actually inside of Wells’ home in Illinois. Her business card even advocates her as the official “Tooth Fairy Consultant.”

Traditions From All Around The Globe

Though the idea of the pop culture Tooth Fairy has its beginnings in American society, the rituals regarding lost baby teeth are different from country to country. Girls and boys from Russia, New Zealand, France, and Mexico put their baby teeth beneath their pillow in the belief that a mouse or rat will switch it out for money or sweets. The notion with this theory is that the boy or girls’ teeth may grow back as powerful as a rodent’s. Plenty of societies’ ideas of the Tooth Fairy imply a rodent or mouse instead of a fairy, although it relies on the area; additionally, the culture and society of a certain place also determine whether the baby tooth is placed under the pillow or left out in the open. The French named this figure La Petite Souris, while the Spanish named it Ratoncito Perez.

Other popular traditions incorporate dropping the lost tooth in a bottle of water or milk—and sometimes even wine–and setting it on the night table. The Norwegians call the Tooth Fairy T, and she wants the teeth in clear water since her aged and tired eyes cannot find the tooth anywhere else. And when the kid awakes the following morning, a silver coin will be at the base of the cup. For Irish boys or girls, the tooth fairy is a youthful leprechaun called Anna Bogle who unintentionally knocked out her front tooth while playing in the forest. She takes kids’ lost teeth to replace her own, and in exchange, she leaves a shiny gold coin.

At the same time, in Asian countries, kids will toss teeth lost from their bottom jaw onto the roof of their house, and teeth lost from their upper jaw will be tossed inside the space beneath their home. Usually, the kids will shout out hope for strong, healthy teeth to thrive in its place.

There are a few societies that handle the practice of lost teeth with caution. As an example, in Austria, young children had been known to hide their teeth in the land encompassing their house. This was completed in order to guard the kids because Austrians thought that if a witch found a child’s tooth, that kid might end up being cursed. However, Viking soldiers strongly believed their son’s or daughters’ teeth provided fortune at the time of war, and they usually made jewelry out of the teeth to wear to battle.

Scientific Research On The Tooth Fairy

It can be said that the practice of these different tooth fairy customs can aid kids in conquering the fear of losing teeth, and offer security at the time of this brand new experience. Anthropologist Cindy Dell Clark has stated that a boy or girl acquiring cash in exchange for their lost tooth is the very first progression into adulthood as getting money throughout adulthood is an exercise in accountability.

Rosemary Wells and Cindy Dell Clark are not the only ones who have been examining and researching the outcomes of the tooth fairy. Visa reported that in 2013 the typical amount left for tooth in the United States was $3.70. Visa’s senior director of global financial education Jason Alderman has explained: “It is due to a combination of things: one is a reflection of an improving economy, and that parents feel they can afford to be generous in small areas.”

Our team wants to know what you believe! Did you have an exceptional tooth fairy practice as a kid? What amount did the Tooth Fairy leave behind for you? Also, parents, we have a few tips on why your child’s oral hygiene routines should be established ASAP over on our blog. Check it out!