STUDY UNDERSCORES NEED FOR IMPROVED ORAL HEALTH IN AMERICA'S CHILDREN

- Parents, schools, greatest influences in preventing tooth decay, illness that results in 51 million lost school hours every year -

PARSIPPANY, NJ (February 12, 2010)

Nearly 10 years after the Surgeon General’s landmark oral health study revealed that more than 51 million school hours are lost due to dental-related illness each year,¹ a new national study reveals that children’s oral health care in too many cases is still inadequate. The independent study, commissioned by the not-for-profit Delta Dental Plans Association, reveals that parents have the greatest influence on children’s oral health - but home dental health care is still too often insufficient.

The study² found that over one-third (36%) of those surveyed admit that their child brushes his/her teeth less than twice a day. One-quarter of Americans say their child never flosses, and only 7% report that their child flosses daily. Almost half (44%) of Americans say their child has never used fluoride mouthwash or mouth rinse.

According to the DDPA study, parents have the greatest influence on children’s oral health, but parental influence declines with income level. Lower-income respondents indicated that schools have the greatest influence.

“We recognize that both parents and teachers are the key influences on children’s oral health, and we are providing the tools they need to encourage children to brush and floss,” said Diane Belle, vice president, corporate communications, Delta Dental of New Jersey. “During February, which is National Children’s Dental Health Month, we send Captain Supertooth, our oral health crusader, to New Jersey elementary schools to teach proper oral health practices to children in kindergarten through second grade. Our Web site features a “Kid’s Club” section where children can learn about oral health in a fun, interactive way.”

In an effort to reinforce the importance of oral health education in schools, the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation also has provided an Oral Health Education Initiative Grant each year since 2007 to at least three New Jersey elementary schools located in Abbott school districts.

One of the grant recipients, the E.W. Kirkpatrick School in Paterson, N.J., has developed an oral health education program. The school provides a weekly fluoride rinse program, a dental health education program with at least one dental-related lesson per month during the school year, a dental clinic for students and a dental health career track for high school students. The school brings dentists directly into the schools and sends material home to parents and guardians.

“Tooth decay is one of the most common - and most preventable - diseases of childhood,” said Suzy Press, D.D.S., a pediatric dentist and mother who is the voice of the Delta Dental public service announcement on the importance of children’s dental health. “It’s five times more common than asthma and seven times more common than hay fever. But we as parents can prevent it by encouraging good oral health habits. Set a good example with your own brushing and flossing routine. Monitor your children’s brushing and flossing. You can give your children a better chance for success in school and life simply by improving their oral care.”

For more information on school programs or the Kid’s Club, visit www.deltadentalnj.com. For current news about the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation, visit the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation Facebook page and read the blog on Helping Hands. For information about the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation’s Oral Health Education Initiative Grant to elementary schools for the 2010-2011 school year, please contact Kimberly Elmore at (973) 944-4555 or kelmore@deltadentalnj.com.

¹ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Call to Action to Promote Oral Health, Rockville, Md.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. NIH Publication No. 03-5303, Spring 2003. http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/oralhealth/nationalcalltoaction.html 

² DDPA 2009, Children’s Oral Health Survey, August 7, 2009, Morpace Market Research & Consulting, Survey Results presentation.

About Delta Dental
Delta Dental of New Jersey Inc. is New Jersey’s leading dental benefits company, providing or administering coverage to more than one million people through contracts with employers in New Jersey and Connecticut. The Delta Dental system offers seamless dental benefits administration for employer groups throughout the country and has the largest network of dentists in the nation. For more information, visit www.deltadentalnj.com.

About Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation
Delta Dental established the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation in 1986. Its mission includes promoting and assisting educational projects devoted to the enhancement of dental health, providing research programs designed to increase public awareness of the general benefits of good health, and improving dental health through the science of dentistry. Each year the Delta Dental Foundation provides financial support to various organizations throughout the state.