A Toothbrush for Every Age – Oral-B Stages Review & Giveaway

The hours before my brother X and I would have to run to the dentist, we would each chew up one of those pink tablets that’s supposed to show you spots that you miss when you brush your teeth. We would then diligently brush, brush, brush until all of the pink stuff on our teeth was gone, and then proudly go to the dentist, showing off our brushing prowess. It wasn’t until a couple years later that we figured out that he was onto our little tricks. The giveaway? Our pink tongues. Haha! Maybe if we’d had toothbrushes and toothpaste from the Oral-B Stages product line, we might’ve paid more attention to our brushing between dentist visits.

Oral-B Stages is a unique product line that’s designed specifically to adjust and grow with kids as their mouths (and hands) grow. With four different stages covering ages 4 months to 8+ years, Oral-B provides special tooth care products that are customized for each age group. For example, the Oral-B Stage 1 toothbrush, which is for 4 -24 months old, has bristles that are very soft and the handle is designed so the adult can hold it comfortably while brushing their tot’s teeth. With the Oral-B stage 2 toothbrush, for 2- 4 years old, there is a narrower brush head with a large, chunky handle to make it easier for little hands to hold on to. The Oral-B Stages products are labeled so you can find the Stage that your child fits in.

We got an opportunity to sample products from Oral-B Stages 3 and 4. As part of our testing package, we received two electric Oral-B Stages power toothbrushes (Cinderella and Wall-E), two manual toothbrushes (one for stage 3 and one for stage 4), and two very kid-friendly toothpastes.

Oral-B Stages Toothbrushes:
I loved that the sizes of the handles corresponded to the stages. The smaller hands get the smaller handles. Both of the manual toothbrushes had a smooth rubber-type material that provided a nice, no-slip grip on the handle. They also had nice textures to the front and back of the handle to provide some traction for little fingers. I could also distinguish the difference in bristle softness between the Stage 3 and Stage 4 brush. The Stage 4 brush seemed to have slightly firmer bristles, in addition to the criss-cross bristles. I imagine that the lower stages will be softer still. Both of the manual toothbrushes we received had two levels of bristles and the “Power Tip to help reach and clean the back teeth.

The electric Oral-B Stages Power toothbrushes are a lot of fun. First, you really can’t go wrong with Disney. One of our testers is in her “princess” phase, so I you can only imagine how she reacted when she saw the Cinderella toothbrush. The electric toothbrushes have convenient on/off switches and you’re even able to replace the battery for the brush. The toothbrush head is a little larger than the Stage 3 brush but is smaller than the Stage 4 brush. Turning the brush on will cause the top part of the head (the round part) to rotate, while the bottom part stays stationary. The handles are molded plastic and have lots of crevices for hands to grip on to.

Oral-B Stages Toothpaste:
I will admit that I tasted these two toothpastes personally…multiple times. I don’t know why, but there’s something strangely addicting about their bubble gum flavor. I took a little taste with the tip of my tongue, and had to keep tasting it to fully register the flavor. I decided that it wasn’t bad, and once I took my fourth little sampling, I understood why kids love it so much. It tastes just like the bubble gum balls that you’ll find in ice cream. This shot is a close up of the Kid’s Crest Toothpaste in the Sparkle Mint flavor. You can see the little sparkles in the toothpaste that you, as an adult, can use to your benefit to help encourage brushing.

Both the Disney Pricesses toothpaste (which is pink and goes perfectly with the Cinderella toothbrush) and the Kid’s Crest have added fluoride to help fight and prevent cavities.

The Oral-B Stages toothbrushes and toothpastes are clearly designed with kids in mind. Whether it’s the different brush heads or the specialized toothbrush handles, Oral-B has tried to make the toothbrushes very kid-friendly and easy to use. By utilizing bright colors and familiar characters, they created products that help make brushing teeth FUN. And once it’s fun, it’s much easier to get kids to continue brushing their teeth.

Now seriously, why couldn’t someone have thought of this earlier? I used to get excited when I got a pink toothbrush from the dentist. I’m sure I would’ve had way more fun brushing my teeth if the toothpaste tasted like bubble gum and my toothbrush was colorful and cool. I know Wall-E wasn’t around back then, but a My Little Pony brush would’ve really won me over in a snap.

If you would like more information about Oral-B Stages, you can visit their website at www.oralb.com/smilestages. Oral B Stages toothbrushes and toothpaste are available for purchase at grocery, food, and other retailers nationwide.

For your very own collection of Oral-B Stages products, enter the WCatDD Oral-B Stages Giveaway!

The Prize:

One winner will receive a year’s worth of brushes and paste for one winner for their kids’ appropriate stage. That’s four brushes and two pastes in any of the stages Oral-B offers.

To Enter:

Make sure you follow the directions carefully. All giveaway entries should use the ENTRY FORM. You only need to fill out the ENTRY FORM once, unless you decide to additional earn extra entries at a later time. You can earn up to 13 entries into the WCatDD Tyson’s Any’tizers Giveaway by doing one, some or all of the following:

Ways to Earn Entries:

Make sure you use this ENTRY FORM for your entries to count!

1. THIS ENTRY IS REQUIRED FOR ALL OTHER ENTRIES TO BE VALID (+1): Visit www.oralb.com/smilestages and tell me which product you like or which Stage your child would use.
2. Post this giveaway on your blog (+3)
3. Tweet about this giveaway using the “retweet” link at the top of this post or by tweeting “Toothbrushes and toothpastes that are just right for your kids. Enter the @WCatDD Oral-B Stages Giveaway! http://bit.ly/7Ctbnk” (+1)
4. Subscribe to WCatDD (+1)
5. Follow WCatDD on Twitter (+1)
6. Follow us on Google Friend Connect (+1)
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8. Add the WCatDD button to Your Site (+2)
9. ONE TIME BONUS: Vote for us for the Web’s Top Giveaway Blogs (+2). After voting, don’t forget to comment on this post as well for your chance to win $100 if we win!

The Rules:

One winner will be selected at random for this prize.

Giveaway ends at 11:59 PM EST, January 10, 2010.

Visit our Giveaway Rules page for general giveaway rules that also apply to this giveaway.

Disclaimer: This post consists of my (and/or fellow tester) opinions only. No compensation was given for this review/giveaway. I did receive free Oral-B Stage product from the manufacturer or their representing PR agency to use and test for the purposes of this review. This did not affect the outcome of this review.