Oral Health Photo Album: Guadaloupe, CA, Dentistry Health Fair

The Santa Barbara/Ventura County Oral Health Collaborative recently organized an oral health fair in Guadaloupe, a town in the northern part of Santa Barbara County, where children of seasonal workers are often uninsured.  OHA provided funding through its Smiles Across America® program for an oral health curriculum in Spanish that is required for all families whose children receive care through the Collaborative’s outreach efforts. 

Above Photo: Pictured here are volunteer dental assisting students Charlotte Moran, Crystal Smith and Nicole Garcia, with Direct Relief International’s Domestic Program Officer Martha Angeles at Guadalupe Dentistry’s oral health fair.  Direct Relief International is a key member of the Santa Barbara Ventura County Oral Health Collaborative.

 
Share your photos and stories in OHA’s eNewsletter.  Email us at info@oralhealthamerica.org.  Be sure to let us know where they are from and who is featured!

OHA's Brush with Art Gallery

Drawing by an Aroostook County (ME) child for the 2009 Aroostook County Action Program Dental Health Poster Contest. The Aroostook County Action Program receives support from Smiles Across America for oral disease prevention services. Encourage the children in your life to show off their art skills, and email pictures to info@oralhealthamerica.org.

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Celebrate Mother's Day

Make a Mother's Day donation in honor of your mother, grandmother, aunt or another special "mom" in your life. A gift in honor of someone special can be a heartfelt way to share your support for a cause you believe in.  Your gift creates a legacy of oral health that will be acknowledged through a Mother's Day card from Oral Health America to your special someone.  Please contact Joseph Donohue, joe@oralhealthamerica.org, call (312) 836-9900, or donate via our secure Verisign server today .  Thank you!

JUNE IS NATIONAL SMILE MONTH
Join Oral Health America in Encouraging
Americans to Brush for Health

The importance of brushing, good nutrition and regular dental visits is the focus of National Smile Month, the largest independent international dental campaign aimed at consumers of all ages. During June, Oral Health America and participating sponsors, dental offices, community care providers, schools, camps, and oral health coalitions will be celebrating summertime by encouraging children and adults not to forget their toothbrushes on vacation. 

“We welcome everyone’s involvement in this effort to ensure that families and caregivers understand the importance of making oral care for all ages part of daily routine,” said Beth Truett, President and CEO, Oral Health America.  “For the young, elderly, and people with special needs, this means taking the time to help them maintain a healthy mouth.  Summer is a great season to concentrate on good dental habits.  As their routines change there is time to build new habits that will sustain health year-round.”

National Smile Month will be launched at the Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore, MD, on June 5th. National Smile Month sponsors include Patterson Dental and the Dental Trade Alliance Foundation.

Oral Health America’s global partner in this effort is the International Dental Health Foundation, which founded National Smile campaigns over 30 years ago. 

 “We look forward to working alongside our partners and thousands of event organizers in the U.K. and U.S., spreading a powerful message about good oral healthcare across the globe,” said Dr. Nigel Carter, Chief Executive of the International Dental Health Foundation. 

National Smile Month brings creative messages about oral and overall health to the public and profession, through significant media outreach, a public opinion survey, and the distribution of a National Smile Month Handbook to thousands of dental practices throughout the country, inviting care providers to share campaign messages with their patients. 

Download our National Smile Month Handbook for ideas on how to:

• Hold a National Smile Month event
• Organize a two-minute brush-off challenge
• Promote healthy food choices
• Engage local newspapers or television stations
• Write a letter to the editor
• Contact your elected officials and ask them to celebrate National Smile Month by ensuring that oral healthcare is included in national healthcare reform

E-mail Oral Health America today and let us know how you will participate in National Smile Month this year! 

Wells Fargo Makes Charitable Contribution to
Smiles Across America®

Wells Fargo Financial Retail Services, a subsidiary of Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC), has made a $10,000 charitable contribution to Smiles Across America®, Oral Health America’s program that supports infrastructure development for community dental services for children without routine access to care. The funds are provided as part of the Wells Fargo Health Advantage® patient financing program and represent Wells Fargo’s commitment to help improve oral health.

“Wells Fargo is proud to help Smiles Across America support oral disease prevention services and oral health education for uninsured and underinsured children,” said Terry Fuller, Senior Vice President of Wells Fargo Financial Retail Services.

Smiles Across America reaches more than 115,000 children annually in eight regions across the country.

Beth Truett, President and CEO, Oral Health America, expressed her thanks to Wells Fargo Financial Retail Services. “Wells Fargo’s contribution will help Oral Health America expand our support for school oral health services across the country."

Wells Fargo Financial Retail Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Wells Fargo & Company, facilitates the delivery of consumer private label and industry credit card programs to retailers throughout North America. Wells Fargo Financial Retail Services is headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. More information is available at wffrs.com.

Donor Spotlight: Dr. Gordon Christensen

Gordon Christensen, DDS, MSD, PhD, Senior Academic Advisor at the Scottsdale Center for Dentistry, and one of the nation's leading clinicians and educators of dental professionals, shares his views on Oral Health America's (OHA) new mission and why he is a loyal contributor.

OHA: Our new mission states that we will improve public health by eliminating oral disease, especially for our most vulnerable citizens, by educating and empowering communities to provide access to care, and advocating for policies that create oral health parity. What do you find most compelling about the mission and why?

Dr. Christensen: Although the mission statement sounds optimistic by use of the word "eliminate" in reference to oral disease, that is essentially possible in children today if the education part of the mission statement is observed. Currently, well known preventive measures can reduce dental caries in children to almost zero. Education about the causes of oral cancer can reduce oral cancer markedly. Periodontal disease is somewhat more complicated, but still highly preventable in most people.

Oral Health America is one of the only organizations directed toward the overall challenge of oral disease. I support other organizations that aim at one or more of the specific challenges of oral disease. However, Oral Health America does it all! Oral Health America identifies the priority areas of oral disease and directs their energies and resources toward those specific areas.

Tobacco Taxes: Saving Mouths, Saving
Lives, Saving Money

Tobacco tax increases passed into law in March as part of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization Act are being felt by tobacco users across the country.  On April 1, in addition to a 62-cents-per pack cigarette tax increase, smokeless (moist snuff) products received a 11.3 cents per can increase and smokeless chewing tobacco was up by 3.1 cents per ounce. 

Studies show that raising the price of tobacco products through tax increases prompts reductions in use.  Oral Health America heard from one former user in Ohio, whose story underscores the importance of ensuring that all tobacco products are taxed at comparable rates.  While recent increases are important, smokeless tobacco is still grossly under-taxed at the state and federal levels in comparison to cigarettes. 
Here is John’s story:

I saw your site referenced on quitting smokeless tobacco. Just wanted to share that I have been using chewing tobacco (Red Man and Levi Garrett) for just about 32 years and as of this past Saturday, have not had a chew for 5 weeks. I decided to go 'cold turkey' because of the tax increases on tobacco.

I have had friends and relatives urge me to quit in the past because they didn't like a chewers habit for various reasons. This simply wasn't the impetus I needed to quit and resisted such recommendations on my habit.

I did some research on quitting tobacco through a 'Wellness Program' link that is available to my company’s employees. Although I was disappointed that most of the information was geared towards smoking cessation vs. chewing cessation, it did offer some positive tips. 

I believe that my decision to quit was based on anger to a large degree. I had a habit of a carton a week (12 packs). Just about 18 months ago, I could purchase a carton of Levi Garret, sold in my area for a little over $14. Today that same carton is a little in excess of $44! With the increase in taxes and therefore raising of prices helped fuel an anger within me to not support those taxes because of my chewing habit. It was not a decision based on my age, wages, lifestyle (Wife and I of 38 yrs are empty nesters now and in the waning years of work prior to retirement). In my mind, my old habit wasn't causing any of the second hand smoke issue or lung cancer statistics which was part of the debate of the last few years, yet the tax applied to me and this is where the anger came in. Be that as it may, it takes something to trigger the commitment to quit from a personal perspective and this (above) is mine.

It has been in excess now of 5 weeks and even though there is an urge or thought to getting a chew on occasion, that urge/thought is not as often as I feared it might be, maybe once a week. I am confident that I am finished with the chewing habit and perhaps some of the reasoning mentioned above may seem convoluted to some, the bottom line is it made me make the 'personal' decision to quit and that is the key to success.

Hope this gives you some insight.

John

Thank you to the many oral health advocates who responded to Oral Health America’s advocacy alerts and contacted elected officials in support of the SCHIP Bill.  Your actions make a difference!

Thank you for your Support!

Our sincere thanks to those who support Oral Health America. Your contribution enables Oral Health America to expand programs that are providing dental care to thousands of children.

If you have not yet made a contribution, please click here to donate through our secure online server. Another way to support Oral Health America is to use the search engine www.goodsearch.com.  Simply enter Oral Health America in the "who do you search for" field. Each time you search, a small contribution will be made to Oral Health America.

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Oral Health America changes lives by connecting communities with resources to increase access to care, education, and advocacy for all Americans, especially those most vulnerable.

To learn about how you can participate, e-mail us: info@oralhealthamerica.org.

 Vol. 6, Issue 2, April 2009