Welcome to National Smile Month
Welcome to National Smile Month
National Smile Month key messages for good oral health:
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A toothbrush is your best friend
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Cut back on the sugary drinks
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Visit your dentist regularly
Welcome to National Smile Month – the UK’s longest-running campaign to promote happy oral health.
Together, with thousands of individuals and organisations, this fun-laden initiative highlights three key messages, all of which go a long way in helping us develop and maintain a healthy mouth. They are:
- Brush your teeth last thing at night and on at least one other occasion with a fluoride toothpaste
- Cut down on how often you have sugary foods and drinks
- Visit your dentist regularly, as often as they recommend
Ultimately the aim is to improve the UK’s oral health
Organised by oral health charity, the Oral Health Foundation, the campaign hopes to raise awareness of important health issues, and make a positive difference to the oral health of millions.
And this year, the campaign celebrates a very special landmark, it’s 40th Birthday!
With the help and enthusiasm of those who are passionate about health and wellbeing, National Smile Month between 16 May and 16 June hopes to see thousands of events and activities up and down the UK educate and engage local communities about the importance of a healthy mouth.
Dental practitioners, other health professionals, schools, pharmacies, community groups, colleges and workplaces – in fact, anyone with interest in good oral healthcare, are joining in to help communicate the message.
Since its creation almost 40 years ago, National Smile Month has helped facilitate thousands of events and projects, and continues to act as the spearhead campaign for providing organised grassroots activities such as fun days, talks, sponsored events, roadshows, displays, open sessions and competitions – all which have the ultimate goal of engaging people in the importance of oral health.
The staff here at North Street Dental join in the fun
In the last two years alone, more than 2,000 oral health events have been organised throughout the UK, under the banner of National Smile Month. It’s a great opportunity to up our game at getting people of all ages motivated to improve their oral health.
Why you may ask? Just take a look at these figures below:
Brushing twice a day
One in four adults don’t brush twice a day, including a third of men
One in ten admit they regularly forget to brush their teeth
Cleaning habits
42% of adults use just a toothbrush and toothpaste for their oral care
31% of adults use mouthwash too
One in four have never used mouthwash
21% of adults use dental floss regularly
One in three have never flossed their teeth
Visits to the dentist
61% of adults in England, 60% in Northern Ireland and 69% in both Wales and Scotland now attend their dentists regularly. In 1978, the figure was just 44% in England and 39% in Wales
Other oral health indicators
84% of all adults have at least one or more fillings
Each adult has an average of seven fillings
31% of adults have tooth decay
66% have visible plaque
29% suffer from regular dental pain
At North Street Dental we’re inspired to keep our patients smiling and we’ll be blogging more facts on National Smile Month over the coming weeks. Hopefully, we’ll inspire you too. Happy brushing!
