Back to School Dental Visits
While you may be busy getting ready to send your children back to school, life will likely get even busier once school starts. That’s why now is a good time to schedule a dental visit for your children. It’s not only good for their health but it may even be required by law.
Why screenings are important.
Dental screening requirements were passed in some areas to emphasize the importance of oral health to children and to prepare them for the school year.1 Screenings are also designed to identify which children are in need of treatment.2
Oral diseases can interfere with learning3, lead to missed school days4 and cause unnecessary pain. In fact, 29% of parents with kids in school said their child missed class due to an oral health issue in the past year, according to a Delta Dental survey.5
Tooth decay is the most common chronic condition among American children.6 Early detection and treatment of dental diseases can help keep problems from becoming more serious and costly to treat.
Schedule a thorough oral exam for your children.
An oral health screening can be done by several health care professionals. However, a simple screening is not as thorough as an examination performed by a dentist.7
At a dental exam, your dentist will identify any issues and recommend treatment. In addition to the exam, you can get your children’s teeth cleaned to help prevent future issues. These preventive services are often covered at 100% by dental plans.
Your dentist will help your children understand the importance of brushing, flossing and eating healthy and also show them the proper techniques for taking the best care of their teeth.8
See if you have a dental screening law in your location.
If you live in the District of Columbia, California, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah or West Virginia, your children may be required to have a dental screening.9
Sources:
1 https://idph.iowa.gov/ohds/oral-health-center/school-screenings
2 https://www.astdd.org/docs/final-school-screening-paper-10-14-08-9-21-2015-edits.pdf
3 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4765973/
4 https://www.deltadental.com/us/en/about-us/press-center/2018/parents-confess-flossing-is-most-challenging-thing-to-get-child-.html
5 https://www.deltadental.com/us/en/about-us/press-center/2018/parents-confess-flossing-is-most-challenging-thing-to-get-child-.html
6 https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/hygiene/disease/dental_caries.html
7 https://www.mchoralhealth.org/OpenWide/mod4_3.htm
8 https://www.colgate.com/en-us/oral-health/life-stages/childrens-oral-care/dental-health-for-kids-a-parents-guide-1013
9 https://www.cdhp.org/resources/341-state-dental-screening-laws-for-children-examining-the-trend-and-impact