Oral health is an important part of overall health, and we need our kids healthy so they come into the classroom ready to learn. Child health should be a prerequisite to education, according to Seattle School Board President Don Nielsen . We require immunizations as a prerequisite to school attendance to protect the public health. We screen for eyesight and hearing problems. It's time we brought children's oral health into the classroom too, and made sure dental disease is not allowed to derail learning.
Oral health is the single largest health issue affecting our young people.
It's time we developed awareness and a public focus on this treatable, solvable problem. Although dental screenings and sealant clinics are conducted at some Washington schools, there is no mandated formal program to ensure that all children receive this important preventive care. The campaign is the first of its kind in the nation, and was organized in response to the first-ever Surgeon's General's report on the topic, calling on states to do a better job in this neglected area of health care and health policy. A broad array of groups have formed the Citizen's Watch for Children's Oral Health to promote public policies to prevent dental disease, assure that all children have access to dental care, and to improve the supply of oral health professionals. Key senators on the senate Health and Long-term Care Committee have recently introduced bills to improve children's oral health.