We created a toy to make the act of flossing fun for the children. We used a mummy made of bandages that resemble our product, besides having a major ludic appeal. There’s a fit for the dental floss on the back and a way through the arm so that the thread goes out of one hand. On the other, there’s a small blade to cut the thread. When the floss is pulled, the mummy blinks its eyes and emits a sound. We also developed a “runner-style” app-game where the character picks up grits and bacteria in a mouth. When lives run out, one just needs to pull the dental floss from the action figure, and the mummy revives. Before using the new lives, there’s a break so the children can use the detached dental floss. So the floss doesn’t finish quickly, the game can only be played once a day.

The project started to be designed in September 2016. The action figures and the app, carefully developed, were ready by the end of January 2017. Simultaneously, we carried out a study to identify which dentists would be the most appropriate for a sampling activity. Finally, in mid-February, we began distributing the products to the dentists around São Paulo, so that they could give the toys to the their young clients.

We don’t have any sales results, once the Floss Heroes is part of a sampling activity. But we do have a significant change in behavior among the children who were gifted the Floss Heroes by their dentists. Around 90% included the habit of flossing in their daily routine. We collected this data by analyzing the testimonial from parents who said, also, that the kids ask to play the game as soon as they finish the main meal of the day and try to floss in the game’s break. The initial goal was achieved: a behavioral change that was practically impossible. Our focus, right now, is to expand the initiative and make it into a product to be sold in drugstores, supermarkets, and even toy stores.