# Multi-Media Parent-based Intervention to Promote Dental Hygiene Among Young Children: BeReady2Smile

> **NIH NIH R44** · OREGON RES BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION STRAT · 2021 · $753,141

## Abstract

Project Description
 Approximately one out of three 2- to 5-year-old children in the United States has experienced caries
(tooth decay). The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and American Academy of Pediatrics provide
recommendations for preventive strategies, and recognize that infant, toddler and early childhood oral health is
one of the foundations upon which preventive education and dental care must be built to enhance the
opportunity for a lifetime free from preventable oral disease. Parents struggle to adopt these preventive
strategies at the same time that challenging behaviors emerge in children's psychological development. This
combination can make it very difficult to build the foundation of oral health practices that the AAPD
recommends. There is a strong body of evidence supporting the use of behavioral parenting strategies in
dealing with child behavioral problems. The proposed project introduces behavioral parent training strategies in
concert with efforts to address other known parental barriers to provide an effective vehicle to promote dental
health with a universal prevention intervention.
 This private/public collaboration between Oregon Research Behavioral Intervention Strategies, Oregon
Research Institute & The Oregon Community Foundation will leverage resources and competencies to create a
commercially viable coordinated oral health prevention intervention program to promote dental health targeted
at parents of young children attending parenting education classes and families receiving home visiting
services through Head Start. The program includes a video that can be shown in parenting education classes
to engage parents on oral health and a mobile/web application to drive behavioral change.
 In this Phase II application, we propose refining and enhancing a coordinated oral health prevention
intervention program, “BeReady2Smile”, including video and mobile/web- application and conducting a
randomized trial to assess the efficacy of the BeReady2Smile (complete program and components) compared
to the current standard-of-care for pediatric dental care education. BeReady2Smile will include video content
that features demonstrations/content on encouraging brushing, proper loading of toothbrush, brushing duration
and frequency, fluoride myths, and limiting sugar sweetened beverages and milk in baby bottles while in bed.
BeReady2Smile will also include a mobile application built within a web-based infrastructure, so parents can
participate in multi-media educational activities, develop dental health behavior plans, tailor features and
receive feedback from the system on a secure website. The long-term goal of BeReady2Smile is to help
parents provide the foundation for a lifetime free from preventable oral disease.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10153750
- **Project number:** 5R44DE027001-03
- **Recipient organization:** OREGON RES BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTION STRAT
- **Principal Investigator:** EDWARD GUSTAV FEIL
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $753,141
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-08 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10153750

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10153750, Multi-Media Parent-based Intervention to Promote Dental Hygiene Among Young Children: BeReady2Smile (5R44DE027001-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10153750. Licensed CC0.

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