Be Proud Of Your Mouth

-
When was the last time you paid a visit to your dentist? Dental care can be rather expensive, more so without health insurance. In many poor income families going to the dentist is a luxury. As a result, many of us tend to neglect our oral health. However, research has stated that there is link between our overall well-being and that of our oral health. Additionally, the on-going COVID-19 pandemic has also played a significant role in delaying oral health care for many in need of same. The World Health Organization (WHO), states most oral health conditions are largely preventable and can be treated in their early stages. The majority of cases are dental caries (tooth decay), periodontal diseases, oral cancers, oro-dental trauma, cleft lip and palate, and noma (severe gangrenous disease starting in the mouth mostly affecting children). The Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 estimated that oral diseases affect close to 3.5 billion people worldwide, with caries of permanent teeth being the most common condition1. Globally, it is estimated that 2 billion people suffer from caries of permanent teeth1 and 520 million children suffer from caries of primary teeth. According to the WHO, in most low- and middle-income countries, the prevalence of oral diseases continues to increase with growing urbanization and changes in living conditions. This is primarily due to inadequate exposure to fluoride (in the water supply and oral hygiene products such as toothpaste), availability and affordability of food with high sugar content and poor access to oral health care services in the community. Marketing of food and beverages high in sugar, as well as tobacco and alcohol, have led to a growing consumption of products that contribute to oral health conditions and other noncommunicable diseases. The theme for World Oral Health Day is: Be Proud Of Your Mouth. Prevention The burden of oral diseases and other noncommunicable diseases can be reduced through public health interventions by addressing common risk factors. These include: the promotion of a well-balanced diet low in free sugars and high in fruit and vegetables, and favouring water as the main drink; stopping use of all forms of tobacco, including chewing of areca nuts. Adequate exposure to fluoride is an essential factor in the prevention of dental caries. An optimal level of fluoride can be obtained from different sources such as fluoridated drinking water, salt, milk and toothpaste. It is recommended to visit your dentist twice yearly for cleaning and examiniation. Finally, we should never forget to floss and brush our teeth at least twice-daily with fluoride-containing toothpaste. Be proud of your mouth; take care of your oral health. Wayne Campbell is an educator and social commentator with an interest in development policies as they affect culture and or gender issues. waykam@yahoo.com @WayneCamo © #WorldOralHealthDay #BeProudOfYourMouth

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Insecticides, Air Travel And Safety

-
Image
We are not insects, we are human beings. To travel by air is a privilege. Air travel is a costly adventure as well.   Those of us who have been fortunate to travel oftentimes experience some amount of excitement leading up to that moment. This heightened sense of emotion happens to almost all of us irrespective of whether we are a frequent flyer or a first timer. This buzz never goes away regardless of whether you travel economy or first class. However, for some folks there is a sense of nervousness during travel. There are numerous lessons we can learn whenever we travel. For example, our outlook on life is often altered due to the interaction with other peoples and cultures. Once the airplane takes off and you begin to ascend into the clouds, sometimes of altitude unbelievable to those without this experience, one can feel like someone who is imprisoned until your flight lands and you disembark. It is usually at those altitudes that the airline crew informs you that they are going to
Read more

Vessels of Honour: Celestial Treasures

-
Image
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”- Psalm 51:10. Many of us have a skewed understanding of God our creator. In many instances we believe or are led to believe that in order to be used by God we must be pure and sinless. This tainted view undoubtedly also impacts our relationships we have with God. Having such a distorted view of God and what God demands from us oftentimes lead us into disobedience. The same is true concerning the weight of condemnation. It is for this reason why it is critical for us to spend time in the Word of God which is the Bible. We all need to know God for ourselves. We often make excuses to study the Bible, yet, we will spend hours on social media or hours gossiping people’s business. Nowhere is gossiping more pronounced than in the church. The church as we know it is not a place of honesty. Why do I say this? Oftentimes we turn to the church in our moments of weakness and vulnerability yet, the solace and compassion that
Read more

Interrogating Black Fatherhood

-
Image
“What I've realized is that life doesn't count for much unless you're willing to do your small part to leave our children all of our children a better world. Any fool can have a child. That doesn't make you a father. It's the courage to raise a child that makes you a father.”- Barack Obama. Fatherhood, especially black fatherhood oftentimes is not as celebrated as it should. As a result we continue to hear of the arguments surrounding my mother who fathered me. There are specific roles concerning the sexes and frankly speaking mothers cannot father children, likewise fathers cannot mother children. Indeed as a society we need to move the discussion away from these examples of oxymoron. This flawed premise has been around so long and unfortunately has become normalized in many societies. However, the time has come for us to have a serious and honest discussion as this argument must be interrogated and replaced with a sense of responsibility. In fact, there is one m
Read more