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The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Health
- The Herald Scotland
Experts make link between dental hygiene and school attendance
The report, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health concluded that 'poor oral health was associated with higher absenteeism, with socioeconomic inequalities exacerbating the impact.' By analysing population-level data sets from 260,000 children across Scotland, the researchers found that those with tooth decay were absent for five extra half days on average when compared to their classmates with healthy teeth. Children in socioeconomically deprived areas of the country were also found to have experienced twice the number of absences as a result of poor oral health compared to children from the least deprived areas. David Conway, Professor of Dental Public Health at the University of Glasgow's Dental School, and co-Director of the Childsmile programme said: 'The findings support the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland Childsmile programme – especially supervised daily toothbrushing in nurseries and schools, which we have shown has driven child oral health improvement across Scotland. 'Childsmile is a credit to the collaboration between health and education teams – including the dedicated work of the nursery and school staff delivering supervised daily toothbrushing. 'Not only can supervised daily toothbrushing improve children's teeth it can potentially reduce school absences – giving both health and education benefits.' Public Health Minister Jenni Minto said: 'I welcome these findings on our flagship Childsmile programme from the University of Glasgow. We have led the way with child oral health through our continued investment in this programme. 'The programme offers universal oral health interventions, such as supervised toothbrushing and fluoride varnish application to children and young people in nurseries, early years schooling and dental practices. 'There are also targeted interventions for children living in the most deprived areas. 'The success of Childsmile is reflected in the latest official stats on child oral health which show that 73% of P1 children have no obvious tooth decay, compared to 58% in 2008 – when the programme was first introduced.' Dr Mariel Goulart, Research Assistant at the University of Glasgow's Dental School and lead of the research said: 'Our study suggests there is a need to continue to address this area of public health in school children, with the research highlighting the need for integrating oral health initiatives within educational and public health policies to mitigate school absenteeism and address health inequalities.'
STV News
3 days ago
- Health
- STV News
Supervised toothbrushing in nurseries and schools 'helps to reduced absences'
A supervised toothbrushing scheme in Scottish nurseries and schools is improving children's oral health and could also be helping to keep them in class. Research by dental experts at the University of Glasgow has found that the Childsmile Supervised Daily Toothbrushing Programme not only reduces tooth decay but may also cut the number of school absences linked to dental problems. The evaluation, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, analysed population-level data from more than 260,000 children aged four to seven across Scotland. It found that children with tooth decay missed, on average, five more half-days of school each year than those with healthy teeth. Those needing emergency dental treatment or a general anaesthetic for extractions missed six or more extra half-days. Children living in the most socioeconomically deprived areas were almost twice as likely to have absences linked to poor oral health as their peers in the least deprived areas. Professor David Conway, co-director of Childsmile at the University of Glasgow's Dental School, said the findings showed the programme's dual benefits for health and education. 'Supervised daily toothbrushing improves children's teeth and can potentially reduce school absences – giving both health and education benefits,' he said. 'It's a credit to the collaboration between health and education teams, and to the nursery and school staff delivering it.' Since its introduction in 2008, Childsmile has offered universal interventions such as supervised brushing and fluoride varnish application, alongside targeted support for children in deprived areas. Official figures show the proportion of Primary 1 pupils with no obvious tooth decay has risen from 58% in 2008 to 73% in 2023. Public health minister Jenni Minto welcomed the study, calling Childsmile a 'flagship' programme. 'We have led the way with child oral health through our continued investment in this programme,' she said. 'It is delivering results for children and families across Scotland.' Lead author Dr Mariel Goulart said the study – the first of its kind to link oral health and attendance using national data – underlined the need to integrate dental initiatives into broader public health and education policy. The findings suggest that improving oral health could be an important step in tackling school absenteeism and reducing health inequalities in Scotland's children. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
