The Yale expositor., 1910-11-04
Education and Children's Teeth.

School authorities are becoming great
| ly interested in various plans for i'm
proving the minds of backward pupils
by improving the condition of their
bodies. Now they have become imbued
with the idea that clean mouths mean
healthy pupils and the examination of
the teeth of school children is the latest
thing under consideration.
An impetus has been given this sub
| ject by letter from Professor lessen
of Germany. He says that investiga-
tion shows that nearly 96 per cent of
the school children have diseased teeth.
! In the past few years, in Germany. un-
der uniform direction, l57,36l school
children have had their teeth examined.
The statistics gathered by the bureau of
dental hygiene in Dresden show con-
clusively that:
/. On account of bad teeth the physi-
cal development of the child is serious
| ly retarded.
2. The more the physical develop
ment is disturbed the less in general is
the mental capacity of the child.
3. The worse the teeth the worse, as a
rule, is the school standing. These are
conclusions which demand serious at
tention from all authorities who are
concerned in the hygiene of the COM
munity. There is no doubt, that the
development of tuberculosis. which
every year in Germany kills $1,000 per-
sons, mostly in the prime OF life, is ia
vored TO large extent by a bad cOndi-
ton OF the teeth.
Professor DR.. lessen of Strassburg,
in Alsace has the credit of creating the
| first school dental clinic. 1t is at the
| disposal of all the children of the pul :
! lie schools, free of charge: il is under
municipal control and employs regu-
! larry registered dentists, who give all
their skill and time 10 this work. Upon
this plan. gradually, school dental elm.
les have been established in thirty-three
cities and communities
"ln no branch of public hygiene are
such decisive results obtained and with
such small cost. The health of the
children is substantially improved by
the dental treatment. The children
willingly come TO the clinic except when
the folly of parents prevents. I he
numerous absences from school OH ac-
connt of toothache and in consequence
of illness resulting from bad digestion,
diminish. The children are fresher
and more alert in their lessons. In
Strassburg where there have been school
dental clinics for five and one-half years,
| the masters testify that among the old
er children and the teachers there is a
better appreciation of dental hygiene
that the working capacity of the pupils
! has increased and that gain i'm the
school attendance is recorded lndi.
rectly the school dental clinics show an
educative influence upon the parents.
The teachers who in the beginning were
indifferent to the new undertaking, are
now convinced of the importance of
dental hygiene and encourage the work
with enthusiasm. Compulsory visits to
the school dental clinics cannot be re-
quired, yet certain pressure can be
used. as is under consideration in Char
lottenburg, in that children with dis.
eased teeth will not be allowed the
privilege of the forest schools, vacation
colonies and other recreation grounds.
"This, the most universal of all dis
eases, cari0us teeth. is the most effect
lively controlled. a well-conducted
school dental clinic is the best and most
effective institution for the prevention
of tuberculosis" The Dental sum
| mary.