Community Oral Health
Interested in learning more about Community Health? Use these links.
Children’s Oral Health
- The Baby Teeth Matter and Kick the Can, available in both English and Spanish, are great resources for messaging the importance of having and maintaining good oral health, including avoiding sugary drinks and making healthy choices.
- Baby Teeth Matter: English version | Spanish version
- Kick the Can: English version | Spanish version
- The CDA’s Dental Health Education Resource Guide is a fun and informative way for teachers to introduce children in preschool through second grade and third through fifth grades to the importance of good oral health.
- Oral sensitivity can affect eating, nutrition, speech, tooth brushing, dental check-ups and oral health and is a common issue for many special-needs children.
- The National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center provides a broad range of resources to support health professionals, program administrators, educators, policymakers, researchers and others to improve oral health services for infants, children, adolescents, and families.
- Dental health resources for Teachers and Students can be found here.
- First Smiles is a statewide initiative that takes on the silent epidemic of early childhood caries among children 5 years old and younger.
- Shared materials for children's oral health
Cancer
This year, approximately 30,000 American will be diagnosed with oral or pharyngeal cancer. Learn more about these diseases by visiting:
- Oral Cancer: How to Protect Yourself (American Dental Association)
- What You Need to Know About Oral Cancer (National Cancer Institute).
Dental Clinics
- Click here for CDA's listing of dental clinics in California. In addition, UOP has compiled a list of dental clinics in California.
- To search for a clinic near you, click the “Find a Clinic” tab on the California Primary Care Association web site, or use the search function offered by the Health Resources and Service Administration.
- Many clinics are in need of volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering your dental professional services, please call the clinic directly for more information.
Dental Sealants
Dental sealants help protect teeth from cavities by placing a protective coating over the deep grooves in back teeth.
Disabled Care
- The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research provides assistance to daily caregivers of the developmentally disabled. Click here to view Dental Care Every Day: A Caregiver’s Guide.
- Donated Dental Services (DDS) — Volunteer dentists and dental laboratories may provide needed dental treatment at no cost to those who are disabled, elderly or medically compromised. For more information, call 800.232.7645 , ext. 4971, or click here to print out an application.
Emergency Preparedness
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security provides information about how to "Be Ready" for natural disasters, bioterrorism and other emergencies.
Fluoridation
- The American Dental Association’s new web page is the best source of information on fluoride and fluoridation.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Question & Answer sheet for community water fluoridation.
- The U. S. surgeon general is a strong supporter of community fluoridation. View his 2004 statement.
- The California Department of Public Health’s Community Fluoridation Q & A
- Read the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research's statement about the safety and effectiveness of community fluoridation.
- In November 2007, Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council released a systematic review of the latest scientific evidence in relation to fluoride and health. It updates the York (UK) Review of 2000, and looked at the evidence published since 1996. Click here to access the 203 page report.
The National Health and Medical Research Council released a public statement including this recommendation:
"Fluoridation of drinking water remains the most effective and socially equitable means of achieving community-wide exposure to the caries prevention effects of fluoride. It is recommended that water be fluoridated in the target range of 0.6 to 1.1 mg/L, depending on climate, to balance reduction of dental caries and occurrence of dental fluorosis." - Read Quebec's Analysis of the health benefits and risks of water fluoridation, 2007.
- The best way to determine if a community's water supply is fluoridated is to call the phone number listed on the property’s water bill. Additionally, The First 5 California Oral Health Education & Training Project’s fluoride map shows optimally fluoridated areas by Zip code.
- Fluoride Information Network helps individuals make an informed decision about community water fluoridation. This web site presents the best known, best substantiated and most truthful information about fluoride.
Give Kids a Smile Day
We look forward to the next Give Kids a Smile Day, which will take place on Saturday, Feb. 5, 2011, during National Children’s Dental Health Month.
Government Programs
- California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB) was created to increase access to affordable, comprehensive, quality health-care coverage. The board administers the Healthy Families program.
- Click here for information on Medicare, Medicaid and other government benefit programs
- Learn about First 5 California programs designed to improve the health of very young children.
- California Department of Health Services
- View the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Guide to Children's Dental Care in Medicaid.
- Find Beneficiary Services information on the Medi-Cal Dental Services Branch website.
Mobile Dental Facilities
Many school districts throughout California have been solicited by mobile/portable dental care providers offering to provide school-based dental services for students. For most schools and school districts, talking and negotiating with such providers is new. Some have expressed a need for assistance in deciding whether and under what conditions to contract with these private providers.
In an effort to assist school districts approached by mobile/portable dental care providers, a statewide group of dental and education professionals, including CDA, developed the information below, which includes a one-page overview of issues to consider, a more detailed set of guidelines, and a sample memorandum of understanding. This information kit is not intended to lead schools/districts to a particular decision; rather, it is intended to give decision-makers some tools and ideas to help make the best choice for a particular situation.
For more information about mobile dental care providers and what CDA is doing regarding this issue, call 800.CDA.SMILE, ext. 5305.
Pregnancy Guidelines
Pregnancy is a unique time in a woman’s life and is characterized by complex physiological changes. These changes can adversely affect oral health during pregnancy. Pregnancy and early childhood are particularly important times to access oral health care because the consequences of poor oral health can have a lifelong impact. Improving your oral health during pregnancy prevents complications of dental diseases and has the potential to decrease early childhood caries and may reduce preterm and low birth weight deliveries.
Learn more about the affects of your oral health during pregnancy by visiting:
- Oral Health Fact Sheets-Pregnancy (California Dental Association)
- Guidelines for Oral Health Care during Pregnancy for medical, dental, early childhood and public health providers and Cavity Keep Away (California Dental Association Foundation)
- Oral Health-Pregnancy (American Dental Association)
- Baby Steps to a Healthy Pregnancy and On-Time Delivery (American Academy of Periodontology)
Senior Oral Health
Smiles for Life is a program developed in response to the need for education and awareness on the importance of continued good oral health for older adults. The materials cover issues related to oral health and the daily oral care of the semi-dependent and independent older adult. This resource is available in English, Chinese, Hmong, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.
There are special considerations that need to be addressed as people mature. The senior oral health fact sheet explains what specific changes take place and how treatment and preventive methods may need to change with time. It is available in English, Chinese, Hmong, Russian, Spanish and Vietnamese.
California Area Agencies on Aging: community agencies designed to lead to the development or enhancement of comprehensive and coordinated community-based programs and services for the elderly in each community. These agencies, administered by the county in which they operate or private non profit agencies, partner with the California Department of Aging.
Tobacco Cessation
Tobacco use causes death and disease worldwide. Learn how to quit at U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U. S. surgeon general's tobacco cessation web page, or Smokefree.gov. You can also call 800.QUIT.NOW (800.784.8669) or 800.NO.BUTTS (800.662.8887) for phone support and to set up a personal plan to quit.