Parental education on infant feeding habits and oral-hygiene practices

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of family-centered oral health promotion compared to conventional oral health education for parents in improving feeding habits and oral hygiene practices for their 1-year-old infant. Methods: At baseline, 589 families with a pregnant woman were recruited in public hospitals and health centers in Hong Kong and randomly allocated into two groups. In the test group, individualized oral health education and pamphlet on infant oral health were provided to the pregnant women and their husbands. Pregnant women in the control group only received the pamphlet. Information on the feeding habits and oral hygiene practices of infants at 1 year old was collected through questionnaire. Clinical examinations of the infants were conducted to assess their oral health status. Results: In total, 447 families (test: 225, control: 222) were followed when the infant reached 1 year old (follow-up rate 75.9%). There were no significant differences (p>0.05) between the two study groups regarding bottle-feeding of infant at mid-night for more than 6 months (test: 31.1%, control: 33.3%); infant falling asleep with milk in the mouth (test: 25.8%, control: 28.4%); infant having sweet drink other than milk twice or more daily (test: 10.7%, control: 13.5%); and parents having saliva-sharing behavior with their infant (test: 64.0%, control 66.2%). Most parents wiped their infant’s oral cavity regularly before tooth eruption (test: 71.1%, control: 71.2%; p>0.05). Most parents also cleaned their infant’s teeth regularly after tooth eruption (test: 76.9%, control: 72.5%; p>0.05). Among these families, 39.1% used toothbrush, 41.9% used mouth-wipe and 18.9% used both aids. The proportion of infants with visible plaque was significantly lower in the test group than in the control group (18.7% vs 55.0%, p<0.001). Conclusions: Most parents in both study groups reported satisfactory infant feeding and oral hygiene practices, while those in the test group were more effective in removing plaque for their infant.