Dental health for steps children
Dental health is crucial for children’s well-being, especially in Namibia, where access to dental care is often limited. With steps for children, we are actively committed to children’s dental health by offering regular dental check-ups and educational programmes from 2024 onwards. By providing dental instruments, toothbrushes and oral hygiene items, we promote caries prevention and support the healthy development of our steps children, young people and staff.
Dental health can prevent many things – not only caries and other tooth or gum inflammations, but it can also reduce the risk of various illnesses. Good oral hygiene is crucial to minimise inflammation in the body, which has been linked to conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and even respiratory diseases.
Prevention promotes dental health for steps children
To introduce oral hygiene into the daily routine of steps children as early as possible, their teeth are brushed every morning in our educational centres from toddler age onwards. A varied and balanced diet also makes a major contribution to dental health. For example, fresh, unprocessed foods strengthen tooth enamel with valuable vitamins and minerals. That is why dental health is an important part of the nutrition initiative planned for 2025 at steps.
Regular dental check-ups
The dental health of our steps children, young people and staff is now supported by regular dental check-ups. In October, there was a first outpatient dental appointment in Okakarara: both nursery children and older Schutzengel children readily agreed to an initial examination and were prepared for possible procedures that will take place at a follow-up visit. This allowed them to get used to the idea and build trust with dentist Dr Maria Mai, who has already worked for the aid organisation „Dentists Without Borders“. Larger treatments are not carried out on an outpatient basis, but in the operating theatre of the hospital in Okakarara.
The dentist
The dentist was not deterred from her goal of improving dental health for steps children - even though, as a qualified dentist, she had to sit another exam in order to be allowed to practise in Namibia. But now the time has come: with her portable dental chair, dental instruments and X-ray equipment, her mobile dental practice now offers our educational centres in Namibia the opportunity to receive professional treatment.
And the examinations are necessary: at the very first appointment, a tooth had to be extracted from six staff members. Even if in some cases tooth extraction is unavoidable, the top priority is to preserve the teeth. To achieve this, we would like to carry out dental health training as part of the project in future.
THE DENTAL HEALTH PROJECT URGENTLY NEEDS ADDITIONAL SUPPORT!
Support us now by donating for materials such as dental instruments, toothbrushes and other oral hygiene items, as well as for travel to our steps educational centres in Namibia. Your donation makes regular dental check-ups and possible larger procedures possible, and promotes dental health.
