Oral Health



Oral health is critical to overall health, yet tooth decay is one of the most chronic childhood diseases in the United States. Poor oral health affects children’s quality of life, school performance, and success later in life. Cavities (tooth decay) are preventable, yet by age 8, over half of children (52%) have had a cavity in their primary teeth. Untreated cavities can cause pain and infections, leading to problems with eating, speaking, playing, and learning. Children with oral health problems miss more school and receive lower grades than children who don’t. Children whose families have low incomes are twice as likely to have cavities as children from families who have higher incomes.
School-based health centers can positively affect students’ oral health in many ways, such as:
Visit our oral health toolkit
Find out our webinar recordings
Learn more from our resources
Together, our consulting team brings decades of combined experience in planning, implementing, operating, evaluating, and improving community-provided school-based health care, including SBHCs. Learn more about consulting services here.