Latin American countries, including El Salvador, have a high rate of early childhood caries or tooth decay—affecting over 50% of young children—which can cause chronic infection, inflammation, mouth pain, and further contribute to malnutrition, poor development and school performance, as well as reduced quality of life
Dental health is a major issue in El Salvador; the need is evident, even on kids. Two years ago we began a program to address this issue. We are helping kids from the poorest communities in rural areas learn how to brush their teeth and correct any already present dental health issues. Medical campaigns are taking place to educate people on dental cleaning and fighting tooth decay.
There is limited access to dental health, as it is expensive and painful. Complications tend to be prolonged through time which creates the need for more invasive treatment once a patient has access to it. There is a large percentage of kids, especially in the rural areas of El Salvador, that do not have tooth brushes and might have never used one. Dental and gum issues are present in really early stages.
This project will be the vehicle to create awareness and will help more people get involved. The benefit of doing these medical campaigns and showing the direct and indirect impacts on the kids and their families has no price as this opportunity removes the risk of children developing more complex diseases.
Potential long term impact is creating a snowball effect that will grasp the attention of public systems to always provide these types of services that are so vital for the proper development of current and next generations.
