The Lagos State Dental Therapy Association has brought the awareness campaign to Orile Agege in order to assist Nigerians in maintaining good oral health.
Their goal is to make sure Nigerians take dental health seriously, understand the need of routine examinations at the dentist, and guard against bacteria attacking their teeth.
The event is a part of the celebration of World Oral Health Day at the Dr. Claudiana Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu Primary Health Centre in Orile Agege, where this year’s theme is “A happy mouth is a happy body.”
Over 200 people were beneficiaries of the dental therapists who showed up in huge numbers to provide free dental care to members of the community. They were given oral health education, free dental examinations, and free scaling and polishing.
The beneficiaries learned throughout the discussion the value of brushing their teeth twice a day, proper brushing technique, and recommended toothbrush and toothpaste brands, among other things.
Speaking with Daily Independent, Ojo Adekunle, the Association’s chairman, explained that the main goal of the program was to provide free dental care to participants, including examinations of their mouths and oral health education on how to maintain a healthy mouth.
Since the mouth is the entrance to the body, anything that affects it also affects the body. Your hand discomfort will only affect that area of your body; on the other hand, pain in your teeth will affect your entire body.
He explained that the goal of the program was to raise awareness of oral health issues and to inform the public that a dentist is available to provide primary care services and will actively engage with the local community.
Speaking further, he counseled Nigerians to always get regular oral health examinations, which should be done twice a year, and to visit a dentist as soon as possible rather than waiting until there is a problem because it is less expensive to see a dentist then when there is discomfort.
He bemoaned the fact that many Nigerians don’t take their oral health seriously and that very few individuals go to the dentist for a checkup without experiencing pain; instead, most people go when they have tooth pain, which is not how it should be.
Nigerians see dentists only when they have an issue that shouldn’t be there, not for routine checkups. Less than 10% of the population visits for dental exams, which is an extremely low percentage. We are raising awareness of the need of maintaining good dental health for this reason.
It’s crucial to brush twice a day, in the morning and at night. You should also use water to gargle your mouth after eating in the afternoon to make sure nothing is left in there.
Additionally, he suggested that only toothpaste containing fluoride should be used, that medium or soft toothbrushes should be used, and that neither young nor old should use a hard toothbrush.
Hard brushes are not appropriate for use on adults or kids. Adults should only use soft brushes; we are unable to prescribe harsh brushes for them. Twice a year should be the standard procedure for scaling and polishing. Regularly doing so will help spot dental decay or other issues early on.
He went on to say that parents ought to take their kids to the dentist starting at age two.