UJ - Portsmouth - Toothpaste advice to parents aims to stop the rot in kids' teeth
Toothpaste advice to parents aims to stop the rot in kids' teeth
16 December 2008
By Clare Semke
Health reporterParents will be advised which toothpaste their children should use in a bid to improve the city's dismal oral health record.Portsmouth's health tsar is sending a list of approved fluoride toothpastes to all 27 NHS dental practices in Portsmouth so they can tell parents which to use.
Children aged under three-years-old should use toothpaste containing at least 1,000 parts-per-million of fluoride, in-line with guidance from the Department of Health.
Youngsters aged between three and six years should use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste containing between 1,350 and 1,500 parts-per-million of fluoride.
As revealed in The News yesterday, latest figures show oral health among five-year-olds in Portsmouth is among the worst in the south-east and worse than the national average.
Children have an average 1.8 missing, decayed, filled or treated teeth by the time they start primary school, compared, to 1.5 nationally.
Dr Paul Edmondson-Jones, the city's director of public health and wellbeing, also wants dentists to encourage more parents to take their children for checks.
He is also issuing a reminder that children should brush their teeth last thing at night and on one other occasion under adult supervision. They should also spit out their toothpaste after brushing but should not rinse their mouths.
He said: 'The primary care trust is clear that children should start regularly attending general dental practices as soon as they are able to follow simple instructions.
'This enables an oral inspection, a discussion about oral health promotion with the parent and provides an opportunity to familiarise the child with dental care.
'This also provides a chance to reinforce to parents that dental care is free for children.'
Portsmouth City Teaching Primary Care Trust will also produce a guide for parents of children aged six and under to go along with the lists of fluoride toothpastes they should use to help protect their teeth from decay.
16 December 2008
By Clare Semke
Health reporterParents will be advised which toothpaste their children should use in a bid to improve the city's dismal oral health record.Portsmouth's health tsar is sending a list of approved fluoride toothpastes to all 27 NHS dental practices in Portsmouth so they can tell parents which to use.
Children aged under three-years-old should use toothpaste containing at least 1,000 parts-per-million of fluoride, in-line with guidance from the Department of Health.
Youngsters aged between three and six years should use a pea-sized amount of toothpaste containing between 1,350 and 1,500 parts-per-million of fluoride.
As revealed in The News yesterday, latest figures show oral health among five-year-olds in Portsmouth is among the worst in the south-east and worse than the national average.
Children have an average 1.8 missing, decayed, filled or treated teeth by the time they start primary school, compared, to 1.5 nationally.
Dr Paul Edmondson-Jones, the city's director of public health and wellbeing, also wants dentists to encourage more parents to take their children for checks.
He is also issuing a reminder that children should brush their teeth last thing at night and on one other occasion under adult supervision. They should also spit out their toothpaste after brushing but should not rinse their mouths.
He said: 'The primary care trust is clear that children should start regularly attending general dental practices as soon as they are able to follow simple instructions.
'This enables an oral inspection, a discussion about oral health promotion with the parent and provides an opportunity to familiarise the child with dental care.
'This also provides a chance to reinforce to parents that dental care is free for children.'
Portsmouth City Teaching Primary Care Trust will also produce a guide for parents of children aged six and under to go along with the lists of fluoride toothpastes they should use to help protect their teeth from decay.
posted by Bill at
10:01 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home