Healthy Smiles is on a mission to work with communities to decrease prevalence of oral health diseases through education and preventive interventions.
“First Decade, No Decay”Oral health is a fundamental aspect to the general health and wellbeing of individual, especially young children. Oral diseases affect the quality of life of children and account for pain, impaired aesthetics, speech disorders, recurrent infections, eating troubles, sleeping difculties, poor ability to learn, and improper growth. According to a WHO report, children tend to miss 50 million school hours worldwide due to poor oral health. With appropriate measure, early onset of dental decay and gum diseases is reversible. Our vision is that with the right interventions we can prevent the onset of early dental decay, therefore the motto “First Decade, No Decay”.
Our Mission
Our Vision
Rationale for Healthy Smiles initiativeObjectives of Healthy Smiles
SO Education and Early detection
are the need of the hour!
Bi-annual routine dental check-ups and oral health screening
Complete check up includes diagnosis of tooth decay, periodontal (gum)
diseases and birth defects such astongue tie
Educational lectures and material forchildren, parents as well as teachers
Oral hygiene demonstration and activities to motivate children
Treatment / Curative aspects
For several decades now, the Indian Institute of Continuing Education & Research (IICER), under our
direction, through an ongoing coordinated and collaborative effort with schools has been able to increase
access to oral health care for children, parents and their families through new initiatives, and promising
practices for preventive interventions.
v Integrity/ Ethics – To conduct all activities and transaction ethically and with integrity
v Commitment to quality – To always provide the best quality of care
v Education – To educate communities on importance of oral health, while also continuously
learning ourselves
v Compassion – To foster a culture of compassion amongst our team and communities
v Community Partnerships – To understand that we will always work in partnership with
communities to promote and spread awareness on oral health.
Dental caries is one of the leading problems in school
going children as well as in adults. The World Health
Organization (WHO) has recognized dental caries as a
pandemic and reported its prevalence among school 1
children to range from 60-90%. Caries or dental decay
is an increasing burden in developing countries like
India. A National Oral Health Survey, 2004 reveals an
alarming prevalence of dental caries i.e more than 50% 2in 5-year-old children. During the survey, Decayed
Missing Filled Treated Teeth Index (dmft) showed a high presence of decayed teeth (dt), while that of the
treated teeth (ft) was virtually absent. The population in rural India experienced more caries. The report also
indicated a need for early treatment and prevention of dental caries in the population as the disease levels
increased with advancing age.Ample data is available on the status of dental caries in Indian population. A study carried out in Sunderban, West Bengal has found out the prevalence of dental caries to be as high as 72% in the rural adolescents in
3India. A study by Shingare et al. in Raigad district, Maharashtra reported the prevalence of dental caries 4among 3-14 years old children to be 80.92%. Mayekar S. et al. carried out a study on 5000 school children
in Mumbai, Maharashtra and found that 7 out of 10 children were affected by dental caries. Prevalence of 5
dental caries in 3-6 year old Anganwadi children in Mudhol town, Karnataka was found to be 62.1%. Singhal 6et al. reported similar caries prevalence of 64.2% in Aanganwadi children of Udipi, Karnataka. A study
7conducted in Bangalore city found a varied caries prevalence of 60-65%. A still higher prevalence of 71.1% 8
was reported on Aanganwadi children at Narmada, Gujarat by Dixit et al. A cross-sectional study conducted 9
in Bundelkhand also reported a higher prevalence of 82.6%.
Our Core Values
IICER Trust
Current Scenario: Dental caries in Indian children
Signicant ndings were noted in the dental assessment of Tribal children in Maharashtra conducted by Healthy Smiles in 2017. Only 1 out of 462 children had been to a dentist. 16% of children gave a history of recent dental pain. Caries prevalence was reported to be 77.2%. The oral hygiene status of 12% and 43% of children was categorized as “Not satisfactory” and “Fair” respectively. There was laxity in the attitude to perform adequate oral hygiene measures.Literature on the prevalence of dental caries in Indian children is highly suggestive of the need to intervene. As rightly pointed out by Jawdekar A, there has not been a national oral health program for the rural or urban
10India till date. To plan a holistic approach towards the improvement of their oral health in Indian children is imperative.
In developing countries like India, the burden of restorative dental treatment is huge. Many children, their parents and school teachers lack the adequate oral health knowledge and awareness. Treating dental caries is expensive due to direct costs of treatment and indirect cost such as time taken off by the parents to take the child to a dentist. Owing to the budgetary constraints, treatment of dental caries at the national level is impractical. In order to overcome this, the role of preventive dental care needs to be emphasized and an integrated preventive dental approach is warranted. With appropriate measure, early onset of dental decay and gum diseases is reversible. Prevention programs reduce the incidence and prevalence of oral and dental diseases. Also, preventive care is inexpensive compared to the treatment costs associated with these diseases. Providing education and early preventive interventions for children reduces the future demand for early restorative dental services and a reduce incidence of dental disease. Furthermore, healthy behaviours and lifestyles developed at young age are more sustainable.
Analysis of Data collected by Healthy Smiles
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Prevention of dental caries is important!
School: An efcient settingSchools, a well-established system provide the most effective platform for promoting oral health because they reach the maximum number of children. Lifelong beliefs, skills and attitudes can be inculcated in the young and malleable minds of school children. Oral health messages can be reinforced throughout the school years, which are the most inuential stages of children’s lives.
Through schools, we not only reach the children but also their parents, school staff and other school community members. Many parents do not know how to brush their child’s teeth correctly or how to teach their children to do so. Few parents have understanding of how to prevent caries and even fewer know the early signs of tooth decay. These ndings highlight the importance of providing school children and their parents with accurate and accessible information about how they can best prevent tooth decay for themselves and their children and improve their overall oral health. This ‘spread of effect’ through schools is well-documented in literature. A ‘directed population’ approach based on geographic targeting (rural areas in each district) and targeting on basis of schools in these rural areas is warranted.
Healthy Smiles Dental Camp (Fluoride gel application) For Tribal Children Of Maharashtra
BMC-Healthy Smiles Project, Inaugurated by Shri Aaditya Thackeray
Highlights Of The Project of ‘Swachh Mukh Abhiyan’ In Collaboration
With The Ministry of Rural Development, Women & Child Welfare
Healthy Smiles Pediatric Dental Set-up At Shardhashram Vidyamandir, Dadar.
Healthy Smiles Dental camp for ‘Special Children’
The children will use the oral health kits provided by Colgate to brush their teeth in school to demonstrate
what they have learnt. Our dentists will reinforce the positive experience around brushing to ensure that
children not only brush correctly but also enjoy the experience. This will increase adherence to brushing.
The overall program addresses the following:
Ü Awareness- Through dental education and simple
but important tips such as twice a day brushing,
healthy food habits, mouth rinsing etc.
Ü Screening- By involving dental fraternity, all the
children will be provided a thorough dental check-
up and report shared with their parents.
Ü Preventive/ Curative aspect- To ensure that all the
kids after the check-up gets proper dental guidance
and treatment.
The focus is to conduct checkups and understand the current oral health scenario of the children at target
schools. In phase two we will initiate tobacco cessation programs and counsel children who are already
consuming tobacco products. Eventually, we will extend this program to adults to educate them on oral
hygiene and oral cancer. Oral cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases in India, even though it can be
prevented if detected at an early stage. With the right message and awareness campaigns we believe we can
reduce incidence of oral cancer.
Furthermore, poor oral hygiene and tobacco use from an early age are the biggest contributing causes to oral
cancer. Use of smokeless tobacco products like “misheri” is on the rise in India because of the myth among
population that tobacco in the product is a germicidal chemical and helps in cleaning teeth. Other forms of
smokeless tobacco like “gutkha” are also very popular among teenagers and children. These products are
addictive and the number one cause of oral cancer. We believe that by educating children at an early age and
discouraging use of these tobacco products can help decrease prevalence of oral cancer in India.
Healthy Future
For the rst time ever in India, we are implementing a Brushing Drill at every school
Our CSR Partners
Contact Us
Saloni Mayekar [email protected] | 9833446585Dr. Chetana Agrawal [email protected] | 9820625624
C. V. R. Group
1. Petersen PE, Bourgeois D, Ogawa H, Estupinan-Day S, Ndiaye C (2005). The global burden of oral
diseases and risks to oral health. Bull World Health Organization 83: 661-669.
2. National Oral Health Survey and Fluoride Mapping. An Epidemiological Study of Oral Health Problems
and Estimation of Fluoride Levels in Drinking Water. Dental Council of India, New Delhi, 2004.
3. Datta P, Datta PP (2013) Prevalence of Dental Caries among School Children in Sundarban, India.
Epidemiol 3: 135
4. Shingare P, Jogani V, Sevekar S, Patil S, Jha M (2012) Dental caries prevalence among 3-14 years old
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Udupitaluk. J Oral Health Community Dent 2015;9:5-9.
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Assoc 1987;59:113-6.
8. Dixit A, Aruna DS, Sachdev V, Sharma A. Prevalence of dental caries and treatment needs among 3-5
year old preschool children in Narmada, Gujarat. IOSR J Dent Med Sci 2015;14:97-101.
9. Jain A, Jain V, Suri SM, Jain RK. Prevalence of dental caries in male children from 3 to 14 years of age
of Bundelkhand region, India. Int J Community Med Public Health 2016;3:787-90.
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REFERENCES