87 per cent of children in Fiji, at the age of 6, have tooth decay
Fiji Oral Health Workers Association urges parents to keep children away from sweets
About 87 per cent of children at the age of six have more than two decayed teeth. This was revealed by the Fiji Oral Health Workers Association general secretary Vinod Kumar at a cheque handover ceremony at the Colgate-Palmolive Fiji headquarters in Lami yesterday. Colgate-Palmolive Fiji handed over a cheque of $5000 to the association yesterday.
Mr Kumar pleaded for parents to ensure that children are not exposed to sweets from an early age because this was the main cause of tooth decay.
“It starts from home. At six years old they are in Year One and we find that more than 87 per cent of them have more than two decayed teeth in their mouths, so this means that the tooth decay process starts at home,” Mr Kumar said. “What we are trying to emphasise is that the mothers and caregivers are empowered so that they are able to look after their children better and provide good nutrition, breastfeeding and cleaning for their health.
“Colgate Palmolive has a programme ¬– ‘Bright Smile Bright Futures’ – and they collaborate with the Ministry of Health so when the ministry dental team goes for a visit (to the schools),
Colgate Palmolive supplies toothbrushes and toothpaste for every child every year.
“During this programme we provide health education and we empower them to brush their teeth and encourage the school to have lunch hour tooth brushing for students. “I would like to encourage every parent to at least bring their child twice a year to the dentist for check-up. This would give them a chance for them to know if there is anything wrong and what can be done,” he said.
Colgate Palmolive Fiji general manager, Hiten Lal, said they had been working in partnership with the association for a number of years.
“With these funds they would be able to educate their professional team,” Mr Lal said.
“Oral health is important from childhood and our brand believes that everyone deserves a future that they can smile about and to continue smiling.
“Oral health is a big part of being healthy.”