Every February, the UK joins the global effort to champion “Children’s Dental Health Month.” Although established originally by the American Dental Association in 1949, the campaign has since been adopted globally and is promoted by organisations in the UK such as the Oral Health Foundation.
What is Children’s Dental Health Month?
Held annually during February Children’s Dental Health Month aims to raise awareness of the importance of instilling good oral health habits in children. To help raise awareness of the month, we’ve produced a free poster you can download and use in your practice.
During the month practices take the chance to focus on:
- Educating parents, carers, and young children about oral health
- Promoting good dental health routines and behaviours such as brushing, flossing and diet awareness
- Encouraging regular visits to the dentist.
Why It matters
Despite overall improvements, tooth decay remains the most common oral disease in UK children. Figures released last year show:
- 22.5% of 5‑year‑olds have obvious decay
- Children in deprived areas are more than twice as likely to have decay as those in affluent areas
- Tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions for children aged 5–9 -year‑olds
These shocking statistics highlight the need for greater awareness to prevent unnecessary procedures and suffering.
Key themes for the month
Start early
Many parents are under the misapprehension that cleaning only matters once a baby’s teeth erupt. Encouraging parents to wipe their baby’s gums with a damp cloth helps remove bacteria and lays a foundation for routine care later on.
Support parents and carers
Parents may not know how to help their children take care of their teeth, so this is a chance to offer them some guidance such as:
- Using the correct type and amount of toothpaste for their child’s age. For example, a smear of chlorinate fluoride-free toothpaste about the size of a grain of rice until their child is age 3. When they’re older, increase the amount of fluoride toothpaste to the size of a pea
- Encourage brushing twice daily for two minutes
- Promote drinking water between meals and restricting sugary snacks to mealtimes
- Try to make tooth brushing fun by using music or favourite songs
- Allow little ones to brush on their own first and then encourage the parent to go over the teeth again themselves to make sure.
Stress the importance of early dental visits
It’s never too early for children to pay a visit to the dentist. The NHS recommends children should have their first dental appointments by the child’s first birthday or within six months of the appearance of their first milk tooth.
Taking children for these early age check-ups offers an opportunity to provide parents with guidance on how to care for their children’s oral health and allows the child to become familiar with the practice environment.
Focus on prevention
Tooth decay is infinitely preventable, and dental teams can play a part in raising awareness. Here are some suggestions as to how to raise awareness of good oral healthcare:
Integrate key messages – On every visit reinforce the importance of twice‑daily brushing, using fluoride toothpaste, reducing sugar in the diet, flossing, and attending regularly for oral health examinations.
Make use of NHS resources – the NHS’s Top Tips for Teeth campaign offers free posters, leaflets, and digital aids for practices.
Make visits to schools – Make contact with schools local to your practice and offer to run sessions on oral healthcare. The Oral Health Foundation has the Dental Buddy campaign and makes available free materials and resources that could be helpful. The British Society of Dental Hygiene and Therapy (BSDHT) also collaborates with practices through its First Smiles Campaign.
Make it fun – Use stickers, interactive bushing charts and certificates in practice to help encourage regular bushing. You may even want to hold children’s only days where you organise fun activities for your child patients while they’re in the practice and staff dress up as well-known characters.
Monitor and follow-up – Use your recall systems to check oral hygiene, spot early signs of decay, and reinforce behaviour change as your child patients grow.
In short, Children’s Dental Health Month presents a powerful opportunity to educate families on good oral health habits, improve early-stage prevention and strengthen or develop partnerships with your local community. So, it’s a great opportunity to ‘catch ‘em while they’re young’ and plant the seeds of good oral healthcare.