Please, Mr. Premier — smile and pass it on

Sonic toothbrushes aren’t enough. Dental care needs to be expanded in Ontario

Straight and white. That’s definitely how I would describe Doug Ford’s teeth — straight and white. My mom says, “Deirdre, If you can’t find anything nice to say about someone, don’t say anything at all.”

So that’s one nice thing. Doug Ford has straight, white teeth. When he grins at us with his arms outstretched, as if mimicking the gesture of a faith leader presiding over a holy and collective action, one can’t help but notice them.

The premier of our still “Yours to Discover” licence-plated province, (no switch to “Open for Business” yet) has the kind of teeth one might get from using a space-age toothbrush like the electric ones recommended, I’m sure, by nine of 10 dental hygienists, including mine recently. Actually, they’re not just electric anymore. While they do take electricity to charge the lithium battery, it is its sonic nature that sets apart this postmodern toothbrush.

“Sonic” as in “boom” is what it sounds like in my head each time I disrupt my quiet mind with the multitudinous vibrating. We’re talking upwards of 31,000 movements a minute. According to one expert, that’s 258 Hz, which lands at about middle C in musical terms.

When I read that I had to bring out my guitar to see if it was true. Either the toothbrush was a bit sharp or my strings were slightly flat, but it’s definitely in the range of do, as in do-re-mi. Either way, now that I know I have a somewhat musical toothbrush I may be more enticed to use it.

Since the contraption came in a two-pack, Renée has also been subjected to this new noisy routine. I feel like I’m cheating on her each time I sneak down to the basement bathroom and pull out my old manual brush inscribed with my dentist’s name like in the good ol’ days.

And if I didn’t feel bad enough about that, the new brush itself is a guilt-inducer. It’s set to run for two minutes with a signal every 30 seconds to switch quadrants. I rarely make the full two minutes and, when I do, I’m never sure if I completed all the quadrants evenly or at all.

Do my teeth feel cleaner? You bet. I hope my dental hygienist notices when I go for my next visit, kindly covered under my health plan through work.

Yes, I’m one of the about two-thirds of Ontarians who have dental coverage through their employer. About 35 per cent do not.

According to the Wellesley Institute, it’s even worse for low income workers, with only 15 per cent of those earning less than $10,000 receiving workplace health benefits and about 30 per cent in the $10,000$20,000 range being covered.

It is not working to rely on employers to carry this. We need government support, prioritizing those who need it most. Knowing the Healthy Smiles program was well underway to assist children with their dental needs, this government’s campaign platform promised free dental services to low-income seniors.

“Under a PC government, low income seniors will receive the high quality dental care they deserve … Because, in Ontario, we take care of those in need.”

Well, not quite everyone in need. Not the thousands of people who are surviving on low to moderate incomes with limited or no access to dental care. Definitely not the individuals and families on social assistance of any kind who fear leaving the system and the security they feel from having access to health benefits.

I am positive the premier knows the importance of a confident smile when it comes to landing a job or closing a deal. We have witnessed that smile and it seems to serve him well. Now we need to convince him to spread that smile to everyone by introducing new health benefits to low-income individuals and families so they, too, can be confident and healthy as they seek to participate fully in their communities, including through employment.

Six million Canadians avoid going to the dentist each year because they just can’t afford it. I hope Doug Ford changes that story in Ontario. Maybe if he hears “All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth” enough, he’ll be compelled to smile and pass it on.

Deirdre Pike is a freelance columnist for the Hamilton Spectator. She tries to smile and pass it on as often as possible. You can reach her sunny ways through email, dpikeatthespec@gmail.com or Twitter @deirdrepike.