Health x Wellness
Free Dental Check-ups!
Colgate-Palmolive Singapore partners the Singapore Dental Association (SDA) to offer free dental check-ups throughout August for Oral Health Month 2015.
In a bid to raise awareness among Singaporeans that oral health issues can be prevented with good oral health habits, Colgate-Palmolive Singapore has recently joined hands with SDA to launch the 12th consecutive Oral Health Month, themed ‘Celebrating 50 Years of Smiles’.
To further underline its commitment to raise public advocacy and education for the years to come, Colgate has teamed up with SDA to provide free dental check-ups at 320 participating clinics nationwide, throughout the month of August.
The oral health services provided will focus on the prevention of oral diseases such as dental cavities and gum disease by encouraging Singaporeans to adopt healthier lifestyles and oral care practices. These include regular tooth brushing of at least twice a day, regular flossing of at least once a day, and regular dental visits of at least once a year.
Survey Reveals High Prevalence of Sensitive Teeth and Cavities
Earlier this year, Colgate commissioned a survey among 1,000 Singaporeans aged 18-65 to gauge the state of oral healthcare among Singaporeans as well as their levels of understanding on basic healthcare habits.
The survey revealed that while 85.5% of Singaporeans agreed that oral health is important to them, nearly half (46.7%) suffer from tooth sensitivity and one-third (36.6%) claim to have dental cavities. This is in spite of the fact that more than half the Singaporeans (55.6%) associate oral health with both looking and feeling good as well as healthy. The survey also found that gum disease is the third most reported oral health issue, with 23% Singaporeans claiming to suffer from either gingivitis or periodontitis.
Acting upon these insights, Colgate hopes that the partnership with SDA to hold the 12th Colgate Oral Health Month will help raise greater awareness among Singaporeans to arrest the global cavities epidemic.
Fight Sugar, Fight Cavities
Dental cavities is the number one most preventable disease in the world, and is a neglected epidemic in many countries including Singapore.
According to the survey, 58.1% of Singaporeans generally know that sugar acids are the number one cause of dental cavities. Though the majority may know of this, there is a common misconception that sweet foods are the main sources of sugar acids. Healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables can also lead to cavities due to sugar acids.
According to Peter Torrington, General Manager of Colgate-Palmolive Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia, as long as one’s unhealthy diet and oral hygiene habits remain unchanged, the caries epidemic will continue to prevail.
The survey also revealed that 26.4% of Singaporeans would rather avoid dental visits as they believe that the visit will be costly.
According to President of SDA, Dr Kuan Chee Keong, going to the dentist should not just be a routine but a habit. The general recommendation is to visit the dentist twice a year. He added that the free dental check-ups offered during Oral Health Month 2015 would help inculcate the habit of visiting the dentist twice a year, and prevent further oral health issues that could lead to even higher dental fees.
Oral Health Month 2015 will be held during the whole of August, with many other exciting activities in line. The free dental check-ups offered during Oral Health Month 2015 is a great opportunity for everyone to get their teeth checked.
For a list of participating dental clinics offering free dental check-ups, visit here.
