The Ad Council and the Partnership for Healthy Mouths, Healthy Lives has released a new mobile game app, Toothsavers.
Available free for Android and iOS devices, the mobile game was created on behalf of the Kids' Healthy Mouths campaign. It is the first developed in-house by the Ad Council, the nation's largest producer of public service advertising, and is geared toward children ages 3 to 6.
The app inspires kids to brush their teeth for two minutes, twice a day, by enlisting them in rescuing friendly fairy tale characters from an evil, cavity-creating sorceress who cast a wicked teeth-rotting spell on the kingdom.
Toothsavers includes three features to help parents and their kids learn about the importance of oral health:
- The game calls on kids to be heroes. In a timed, finger-swipe brushing game, they can save 10 characters in a fairy tale kingdom.
- The two-player version of the game allows for kids to "brush" the teeth of their friends and parents when the mobile device is held up to their mouths.
- The app also offers a real-life toothbrushing companion for kids and parents to keep track of their brushing progress, as well as morning and nighttime reminders.
Peggy Conlon, president and CEO of the Ad Council, explained that mobile technology plays a major role in influencing young people's behavior, making it an ideal fit for the campaign. The game represents the organization's ongoing efforts to use technology to promote health, education, and well-being. Common Sense Media reports that 1 in 5 kids younger than age 8 uses a mobile device every day.
The Kids' Healthy Mouths campaign was launched in August 2012. Since then, it has received more than $46 million in free ad time and space and nearly 1.6 million visitors to its website, 2min2x.org. After its first year, the Kids' Healthy Mouths campaign has reported progress in the effort to improve children's oral health habits.
