Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children

van Spreuwel, Peggy C.J.M.; Jerković-Ćosić, Katarina; van Loveren, Cor; van der Heijden, Geert J.M.G.

doi:10.3390/ijerph182111437

Open AccessArticle

Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children

by

Peggy C.J.M. van Spreuwel

^1,2,*

,

Katarina Jerković-Ćosić

¹,

Cor van Loveren

³ and

Geert J.M.G. van der Heijden

²

¹

Research Group Innovation in Preventive Care, Utrecht University of Applied Science (HU), 3584 Utrecht, The Netherlands

²

Department of Oral Public Health, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA), University of Amsterdam and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 Amsterdam, The Netherlands

³

Department of Preventive Dentistry, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA), University of Amsterdam and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 Amsterdam, The Netherlands

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(21), 11437; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111437

Submission received: 1 October 2021 / Revised: 21 October 2021 / Accepted: 26 October 2021 / Published: 30 October 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dental Public Health: Issues, Challenges and Opportunities)

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Abstract

There is growing evidence for the beneficial effects of starting oral health prevention early in life. Preventing dental caries in very young children requires considerable investment from parents. Therefore, this cross-sectional study aimed to explore parents’ willingness to pay (WTP) and willingness to invest in time (WTIT) for primary oral health prevention in preschool children and describe whether these are related to the parents’ demographic, socio-economic and behavioural characteristics. In a convenience sample of parents of preschool children aged six months to four years (n = 142), data were collected with questionnaires. On average, parents were willing to pay EUR15.84 per month, invest time for 1.9 dental visits per year, and spend 2.4 min per day brushing their child’s teeth. A higher education level of the mother and having a child older than two were associated with a higher WTIT in brushing minutes per day (p = 0.03). In addition, parents who brushed their child’s teeth more frequently were also more willing to invest in brushing minutes (p < 0.01) and money (p < 0.01). Findings emphasise the importance of early oral health interventions and the need to increase awareness of primary prevention’s importance in maintaining healthy teeth and reducing possibly oral health inequalities.

Keywords: willingness to invest; contingent valuation; willingness to pay; preschool children; oral hygiene behaviour; dental caries; preventive dentistry

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MDPI and ACS Style

van Spreuwel, P.C.J.M.; Jerković-Ćosić, K.; van Loveren, C.; van der Heijden, G.J.M.G. Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 11437. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111437

AMA Style

van Spreuwel PCJM, Jerković-Ćosić K, van Loveren C, van der Heijden GJMG. Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(21):11437. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111437

Chicago/Turabian Style

van Spreuwel, Peggy C.J.M., Katarina Jerković-Ćosić, Cor van Loveren, and Geert J.M.G. van der Heijden. 2021. "Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 21: 11437. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111437

APA Style

van Spreuwel, P. C. J. M., Jerković-Ćosić, K., van Loveren, C., & van der Heijden, G. J. M. G. (2021). Parents’ Willingness to Invest in Primary Oral Health Prevention for Their Preschool Children. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(21), 11437. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111437

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