Oral Health Awareness
Why is better oral health important?
Tooth decay is the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged six to 10, and children living in the most deprived communities are around 3.5 times more likely to have teeth extracted than those in the most affluent areas. On average 3 days of school are missed per year due to dental problems, which also can have significant impact on earning potential. Oral health and healthy teeth influence being able to eat a healthy diet to aid growth, speech development, and is key to social development and learning. Early habits of good oral hygiene need to be established to prevent these problems.
In St Helens, the percentage of 5-year-olds with any experience of tooth decay is worse than the England average. In 2021-22, 31.2% of 5-year-olds in the borough had visual tooth decay compared to 23.7% in England and 30.6% in the Northwest. St Helens ranks as 31st highest in England and 13th highest in the Northwest.
We offer oral health awareness training to support professionals or anyone working with children and families
After this session you will:-
- Have a better understanding & knowledge of Oral Health information and the holistic picture
- Feel more confident in supporting children & families to maintain good oral health, including information around the benefits fluoride in toothpaste provides especially for children’s teeth and why. How to brush effectively and when the best times to brush teeth and gums are.
The best teething and weaning practices.
- Be aware of the main causes of tooth decay and how to maintain a healthy mouth and the impact sugar and acid attacks have on teeth and how to reduce the damage
- Understand the importance of baby teeth and how to look after them
- Know about accidental injury & tooth damage
- Know how to signpost to local emergency dental services
To book a place you can use the online booking Oral health awareness training
