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.
