Dr Susan Cartwright, Colgate Scientific Affairs Manager and practising dentist: Q & A

Happy Halloween! Oh go on… join in, Australia!

At a time like Halloween when sugar consumption is at an all time highhhhh, and tooth decay and good oral health is perhaps even more important.

Fun stat: Aussie kids will consumer 22.3 million EXTRA sugary treats this Halloween (aaargh, that's a lotta sugar!), and it's sobering to add to this that tooth decay in children is five times more prevalent than asthma. It's also the most common chronic disease for children, with child oral health in Australia actually getting worse, according to the Australian Dental Association

The good news is that following a major breakthrough in dental technology, there is a new toothpaste that can reduce the early signs of tooth decay by half (after 6 months use) – the Colgate Maximum Cavity Protection plus Sugar Acid Neutraliser. It's the first and only family toothpaste globally with unique Sugar Acid Neutraliser technology that directly fights sugar acids in plaque, the number one cause of cavities.

Dr Susan Cartwright, Colgate Scientific Affairs Manager and practising dentist for over 25 years answers questions from TwinnieWorld on kiddie brushing, tooth decay or sugar.

1. At what age should kids first visit a dentist?

It's good practice to take your child to the dentist with you when the first teeth have erupted so that they can get used to the environment and you can receive advice about how to care for their teeth.

2. What are some oral and dental hygiene tips for kids?

·     Make brushing a game – sing along, tell a story

·     Make brushing a part of the bath routine

·     Set the example – show children how you brush your own teeth

·     Use age appropriate brushes and paste

·     Always brush after the last food/drink has been consumed and at one other time in the day

·     Always assist children under the age of 8 yrs

3. How would you explain tooth decay and its correlation with excess sugar consumption to kids in simple terms?

Sugar helps bad bugs grow. Bad bugs make acid that dissolves your teeth.

I like this explanation. Nice and simple.

Here are some top tips to help children brush from Dr Susan Cartwright:

• Start early with babies - as soon as the first tooth erupts
  
• Make brushing a game - sing along, tell a story
  
• Make brushing a part of the bath routine
  
• Set the example – show children how you brush your own teeth
  
• Use age appropriate brushes and paste
  
• Always brush after the last food/drink has been consumed and at one other time in the day
  
• Always assist children under the age of 8 yrs
  Colgate is committed to developing new technologies to directly combat the effects of sugar intake on children’s teeth.
  
  The result is a breakthrough toothpaste that reduces early decay by half1 – Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection plus Sugar Acid NeutraliserTM. This is the first and only family2 toothpaste globally with unique Sugar Acid NeutraliserTM technology that directly fights sugar acids in plaque, the number one cause of cavities.
  
  Colgate® Maximum Cavity Protection toothpaste plus Sugar Acid NeutraliserTM is available in all major supermarkets in two sizes and two variants from $3.49 RRP. 
  
  
  
  
  

Robbie Williams: 'No Moms Were Harmed': VIDEO

I love this.

You saw the clips from Robbie Williams and his wife Ayda Field and the whole crazy-fun, delivery room experience, at the birth of their second child?

Here is what he wrote about it:

""No Moms Were Harmed in the making of these videos". Thank you for sharing the journey with us, we have been blessed with a beautiful baby boy. RW x"

And here is the now-viral clip (I love it. Robbie is a fun guy, she gets it. What a cool little family):

'Small Plates': VIDEO - 'The New York Times' magazine

For 'The New York Times' magazine’s fall Food issue, they treated six second graders from P.S. 295 in Brooklyn to dinner at Daniel, where the seven-course tasting menu goes for $220 a person.

Read the full story here: http://nyti.ms/1117Cai

Subscribe to the Times Video newsletter for free and get a handpicked selection of the best videos from The New York Times every week:http://bit.ly/timesvideonewsletter

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Watch more videos at: http://nytimes.com/video

'Friends Without Kids': WhatsUpMoms - VIDEO

I was introduced to this funny page by Giselle Ugarte - who presents the Weekend Today show gossip reports for Australian TV… it's called 'What's Up Moms', run by three American   mothers named Elle, Meg and Brooke, and they upload very funny YouTube videos which clearly translate across the oceans for us Aussie mums.

Here is a video called: 'Friends Without Kids' - mothers, you will relate:

Elle is in this video, and she says of the video:

"An overdue explanation of why it's sometimes hard for me to hang out. Thanks to all who have shared this and confirmed I'm not the only one.

"Shot & edited by Elle in a semi sleep deprived state between feedings".

Follow her: 

http://www.instagram.com/whatsupelle
http://www.facebook.com/whatsupelle
http://www.twitter.com/whatsupelle 
http://www.youtube.com/whatsupelle 

Want to see the rest of the channel? See more and subscribe here.

And you can follow WhatsUpMOMS on all the social media networks below:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/whatsupmoms
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/WUMoms
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/whatsupmoms
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/whatsupmoms

Wonka Chocolate Masterclass and Golden Ticket

In July, I took part in a fun day of experimental chocolate making with the master chocolate makers: Wonka!

Here are some fun pics from the day:

It was also the day the Mr Wonka announced that he had hidden five WONKA GOLDEN TICKETS in his chocolate inventions, and will open the doors to his Chocolate Factory and Inventing Room for one day only this October. The winners have been chosen and the five lucky winners get to go into Wonka's world this week!

Fun facts from Mr. Wonka’s 'Stupendous Study of Chocolate' were also revealed, such as: that for 90% of Australians chocolate is their preferred sweet treat of choice*. 

And, so excited at the prospect of seeing behind WONKA’s wondiferous doors are 47% of Australian parents, that they have said they would even give up their mobile phone for a day or their beloved coffee for a week for the chance to see and experience the Master’s Invention Room.

48% of the nation’s chocolate eaters said unwrapping and eating a block of chocolate is as exciting for them as waking up on Saturday morning and realising it’s the weekend. (Just quietly, the ability to sleep in all over again on a weekend would be fab… the twins let me; it's my now pre-programmed body clock that won't!)

The five finders of the tickets will experience once in a lifetime, privileged access to the wonder of the Chocolate Factory, as well as enjoy a top-secret invention session with Mr. Wonka’s CCO (Chief Combobulation Office) in his private Inventing Room. During this assembly, each winner will be asked to formulate the most wondiferous invention they can – something that inspires, delights, amuses, and that they can call their own; living proof that dreams can come true.

Scrumdiddlyumptiousness Advisor, Chris O’Donnell explains why now marks the perfect time for Mr. Wonka to announce such an exciting opportunity. “October, the luna month of chocolate for Oompa Loompas is the most fitting time for Mr. Wonka to share some of his secrets of ‘sweet success’ with five very lucky families. In a world-first, Mr. Wonka will also select one family’s WONKA Chocolate block invention for his Oompa Loompas to produce in 2015. Now, that’s a family legacy to leave behind!” says Chris.

The poignant childhood memories created by Mr. Wonka’s original 1971 feature film – Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory - live on in our nation’s psyche. Reminiscent of little Charlie Bucket’s experience, Wonka’s Stupendous Study of Chocolate found that Australia’s sweetest childhood memory was walking to the local corner shop to buy a special treat.

The study also found that:

·     Those that choose chocolate over other sweet foods are more creative and adventurous than their lolly or ice cream counterparts.

·     The nation’s chocolate eaters said unwrapping and eating chocolate is as exciting for them as:

o   Spending time with close friends (28%)

o   Receiving and unwrapping birthday presents (22%)

·     Aussies show slightly peculiar and particular ritualistic behaviours around chocolate. 

o   25% insist that the block of chocolate must be facing upwards so they can see the pattern on the top whilst eating it

o   1 in 10 Australians have to eat squares from a specific direction, so only from left to right or opposite

o   1 in 3 of us also prefer to suck their chocolate than chew it

WONKA Chocolate is available in Woolworths, IGA and selected independent grocers, petrol and convenience outlets, including the newest creations WONKA Cookie Creamery and WONKA Mudpuff Caramelstuff. (See pics below… don't drool now. Better still, get into some blocks… the Cookie Creamery is highly addictive).

The WONKA GOLDEN TICKET promotion is now over (the five winners have been chosen) and will run in Australia and New Zealand from 28 July 2014 until 8 September 2014.

'Momhead': Johanna Stein - "Ways In Which My 4-Year-Old Has Insulted Me (true story)" VIDEO

A whole new perspective on motherhood… this is brilliant.

From the author of "How Not to Calm a Child on a Plane and Other Lessons in Parenting from a Highly Questionable Source" by Johanna Stein - available here is Johanna Stein, the writer/performer/editor in this going-viral video titled: "Ways In Which My 4-Year-Old Has Insulted Me (true story)."