April is National Oral Health Month

Poor oral health can affect a person’s quality of life. Oral pain, missing teeth or oral infections can influence the way a person speaks, eats and socializes. These oral health problems can reduce a person’s quality of life by affecting their physical, mental and social well-being.

“Tooth decay is still one of the most prevalent disorders of childhood and is five times as common as asthma and seven times as common as hay fever,” says Hadikin. Tooth decay is caused by bacterial infection and though it is mostly preventable regular dental exams can help prevent small problems from getting worse.

“The best thing we can tell parents and caregivers is that they need to brush their children’s teeth,” adds Hadikin.