![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ftf-stg.magnetry.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Navajo_apache_2018.png\")
<\/p>\nTiffany Western and her five children could be the poster family for a local children’s oral health program. There’s no struggling or bribing to get these kids to brush their teeth every day or to hop into the dentist chair twice a year.<\/p>\n
Instead, the Heber mom says her kids \u2013 who range in age from 1 all the way up to fifth grade \u2013 are actually “excited about caring for their teeth.”<\/p>\n
Western credits the positive attitude to a local oral health program funded by First Things First. Beginning as babies, the Heber mom’s three youngest children followed in the footsteps of their two older siblings to receive free dental screenings and fluoride treatments regularly. \u00a0The program is available to children birth to age 5 in the FTF Navajo\/Apache Region in northeastern Arizona.<\/p>\n
“Three of my children had cavities early on that we never would have known about had it not been for the screenings,” Western said. “And, the fluoride treatments are essential to good oral health at an early age.”<\/p>\n
Good oral health in young children plays a critical role in a child’s overall wellbeing and education. Parents and caregivers are the first defense in helping prevent tooth decay in Arizona’s youngest children.<\/p>\n
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That message is replayed over and over in February during National Children’s Dental Health month, which promotes the benefits of good oral health. Left untreated, tooth decay in young children’s primary teeth puts them at risk for future problems like damaged permanent teeth and increased vulnerability to infections in other parts of the body. Tooth decay is the most common chronic disease faced by young children, but it also 100 percent preventable.<\/p>\n
Western said getting her children’s teeth screened as infants or toddlers helped diminish any fear or anxiety of going to the dentist as they got older.<\/p>\n
“I’m so grateful to Robin House (oral health educator for Navajo County Public Health) and all the people who administer the program,” said Western, who lives in Heber. “They taught my kids to be excited about caring for their teeth.”<\/p>\n
Children in the program also receive toothbrushes, toothpaste, a brushing timer and a dental-themed coloring sheet.<\/p>\n
One big side benefit of the program?<\/p>\n
“I don’t have to fight with them to get them to brush their teeth,” Western said.<\/p>\n
FTF offers these tips for families of babies, toddlers <\/strong> and<\/strong> preschoolers:<\/strong><\/p>\n Parents and caregivers are the first defense in helping prevent tooth decay in Arizona\u2019s youngest children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":10052,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[24,38,68,79,160,297],"class_list":["post-10034","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-health-nutrition","tag-toddlers","tag-infants","tag-oral-health","tag-navajo-apache","tag-health"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n