It is a staggering thought, but in Primary Schools across the UK around eight or nine children in every class will have already developed tooth decay.  That’s approaching a quarter of a million children in each primary school year and around 3.3 million young people aged 0-14 years.

Yet poor oral health is one of the most preventable common childhood diseases in the world.  All that’s required is education and a good daily oral health routine.  In most cases, it’s nothing more than doing the following:

      Brushing your teeth for two minutes twice a day with a fluoride toothpaste

         Cutting down on how often you have sugary foods and drinks

      Visiting your dentist regularly, as often as they recommend

Schools, working with parents and health professionals, have an important role to play in educating young people about healthy lifestyles, including their oral care.  Introducing oral health into the school curriculum, especially at Key Stage 1 and 2, can make a big difference. Research has shown that people who learn good habits as children are far more likely to carry them into adulthood.

One of the best times to promote oral health in schools is during National Smile Month - one of the UK’s longest running health campaigns.  Born in 1977, National Smile Month has coincided with huge improvements in the UK’s oral health over the past few decades.  But there’s still a lot more to do, especially with young people.

National Smile Month is a proven event and attracts the support of many dentists and oral health educators.  Many dental professionals allocate time during National Smile Month to work with schools and young people (like the oral health team from Ayrshire Central Hospital, Scotland, who visted a local school in 2011 - right). Schools contacting their local dentist are generally pleasantly surprised how willing they are to give up some of their time to visit the classroom.  Often, they can have a profound effect on the attitude children will have towards the dentist.

Throughout National Smile Month a series of fun classroom activities can keep children engaged and interested. The campaign is supported by hundreds of educational materials produced by the Foundation.  There’s also a range of free resources available to download from this website to use in lessons.  Even our very own ‘Happy the Hippo’ is on hand to promote the importance of healthy mouths.

In the classroom, using photographs and puzzles to sequence the events of the visit to the dental practice, identifying and labelling the components of a dental surgery using healthcare jigsaws and role-play will provide confidence and encourage the children to go to the dentist when outside the group.

For 2012, the symbol of National Smile Month is our ‘Smile on a Stick’.  It’s guaranteed to put a smile on everyone’s face from the youngest pupil to the Chair of School Governors.  It’s a lot of fun, as well as encouraging everyone to adopt a great daily oral health routine.  The ‘smile on a stick’ is ideal to run a ‘Smileathon’ throughout the school and will help to make oral health education a fun and memorable event.

If you don’t fancy a ‘Smileathon there’s lots of other things to do. A ‘best smile’ competition often works very well, as does a ‘Brushathon’. Other alternatives include holding a themed day during the campaign where the children can dress up and play the different roles of a dental practice, or create a colourful and eye-catching display made in the classroom.

You can register for a free campaign guide and receive some of the 10,000 ‘Smiles on a sticks’ by following this link: Register.