Maya’s Story: Childhood Dental Disease is on the Rise

With StarSmilez, your dental office helps kids like Maya who have no access to dental healthcare. 

Maya is just one of the many cases dentists at PDI Surgery Center see daily. But she’s one of the lucky ones. 

Maya’s mom could not figure out why her 4-year-old daughter’s attitude had suddenly taken a turn for the worse.  When she took the first phone call from Maya’s school, she was shocked to hear Maya’s teacher reporting loud, vocal outbursts from her sweet-tempered daughter.  Not only had Maya become the problem child in class, her recent attitude change was causing a decline in her grades and a strain on her friendships.  Little did she know, Maya was suffering extreme pain from severe dental decay. 

In 2009, more than 16 million American children went without any dental care.  In California, the state with the lowest oral health of children, 50% of kids have cavities and 25% suffer from untreated tooth decay when they first begin attending school.  A PEW Report cites a shortage of dentists willing to treat MediCal patients as the cause of this problem. 

PDI’s mission is to serve these low-income children who would otherwise go untreated.  Their typical patient is just 3.5 years old and suffers from 10 or more cavities. Combined, these young children miss over 51 million hours of school each year because of poor oral health. 

Teaching a child proper oral health is a crucial first step to a happy, healthy life. Schedule a visit to the dentist today.

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Comments (1)

Teaching kids how to brush properly - Adventuresof8,06/22/2014

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