The Tribune

IT is February and henceforth in The Bahamas, February will be National Children's Dental Month. This is the first year that the Bahamas Dental Association (BDA) will celebrate National Children's Dental Month. It will be an event-filled month, with a climax at the Mall of Marathon that promises to be something amazing. Among other things, there is going to be an entertaining Junkanoo rush-out on that day. National Children's Dental Month has been celebrated in the United States of America (USA) since February 1941. It started modestly in Cleveland and Akron, which are both in the state of Ohio, but quickly grew to include all parts of the USA. It has also blossomed from just one day of activities, to one week of activities, to an entire month of activities. The American Dental Association (ADA) made the first national observance of Children's Dental Health Day on 8th February, 1949. The Children's Dental Health Day then became National Children's Dental Month in 1981. The slogan for the ADA's campaign is "Rock Your Smile". In The Bahamas, we will do it Junkanoo style. The slogan for the BDA's campaign is "Rush-2- Brush". It is just as important in The Bahamas as in the USA, to develop the attitudes and habits of our young persons, so as to ensure good mouth health throughout life. It is impossible to truly encourage healthy living, if you do not promote mouth care. Children with strong healthy bodies will have strong healthy mouths and will not suffer from mouth diseases. During the month of February, the BDA will ensure that emphasis is placed on the importance of mouth care for all children. The BDA has secured partnerships with other associations to assist in spreading the importance of mouth care to our children. The Ministry of Heath has also pledged its assistance, and the sponsorship from commercial entities is highly anticipated. It will be a delight to see groups of persons coming together to improve and promote mouth health for the children of the nation. The private and the public sectors will stand together. Please keep an eye open for those motivated persons who will be ensuring that National Children's Dental Month is a success. You can listen out for them on the radio. Also, look out for them on the television; in the schools; in the churches and at the Mall at Marathon. When they speak, listen carefully and ask many questions. It is important to get as much knowledge and as many tools as you possibly can, to help the children. If we do not care for the mouth health of our children, who will? It is important to remember that good body health and good mouth health create truly HEALTHY children. Rock Your Smile. Rock it the Bahamian way. Rush-2-Brush.