The proportion of children brushing their teeth less than once a day, among children when they start brushing with toothpaste, almost doubled between 1993 and 2000. The proportion brushing with low-fluoride children's toothpaste, as is recommended for children aged 6 years or under, has increased. The inappropriate eating or licking of toothpaste has increased, both when children start brushing and at 5 years of age.