United Way of Ventura County update for Feb. 7 — February is National Children’s Dental Health Month

February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and United Way is proud to advocate for increased services on behalf of the 100,000 children in Ventura County who qualify for Dent-Cal and do not have access to a dental home. Tooth decay affects more children in the United States than any other chronic infectious disease. And yet, it is the most preventable.

A lack of access to dental care can result in expensive emergency room visits, missed school days, and, ultimately, poorer academic performance and lost job opportunities. This contributes to multi-generational poverty and increased social costs for taxpayers. As a community, we need to collectively provide hope and opportunity for low-income children, not make life harder and perpetuate the cycle of poverty.

Last year, United Way’s Building Healthy Smiles Initiative and our partners assessed the dental health of 577 children and also educated 877 children and their families about dental care through our school-based approach. We’re making progress, but there is much more to be done.

Our goal is to create long-lasting changes that prevent problems from happening in the first place. Now isn’t that something to smile about?