CLOSE UP CELEBRATES 20 YEARS OF PROMOTING GOOD ORAL BEHAVIOUR WITH NDA

;   Dr  Mrs  Bimpe  Adebiyi,  Head  of  Dentistry of Federal Ministry  of   Health,  M D  of  Unilever  Mr Thabo  Mabe,  National Chairman  of  NDA, Dr  Olufemi Orebanjo  and  Unilever Brand  Building  Director, Mr  David  Okeme

Undoubtedly, the consequence of poor oral hygiene begins with discomfort and pain which may lead to life-threatening illnesses. According to experts, poor oral health has remained a widespread Nation’s problem and one that is rarely prioritised by governments.

Speaking  over  the  weekend  in  Lagos,  Managing  Director of Unilever Nigeria Plc, Mr Thabo Mabe, said  that  unfortunately, most  Nigerians  do  not  regard  oral  care  as  a  priority  for  good  health.

Mr  Mabe  who  spoke  at the  launch  of   the  unveiling   of   the   20 th    Anniversary Relationship   Logo      between  Unilever    and   Nigerian  Dental   Association (NDA)   said that  “  improving  oral   health  in  Nigeria  has   been  a  burning  issue  in  the  mind  of Unilever which  lead  to  its synergy with  NDA  in  a  journey  that  commenced   as  far  back  as  20  years  ago”.

“Our   partnership  with   NDA   was  inspired  by   the  understanding  that  we  need  to partner  to  achieve  our  common  objectives  of  improving  the  oral  health  of  Nigerians”.

We  cannot  over emphasize  the  place  of  partnership  building   and  bringing  out  the  right   policy  environment  that  allows  all  stakeholders  in  Dentistry  community  to  effectively  work  towards  improved  oral  health  in  the  country,  the  Unilever  MD  emphasized.

In the views of  the  National  Chairman  of  Nigerian Dental Association (NDA), Dr. Olufemi  Orebanjo  he  lamented  that  statistics   available   have shown that more    than     estimated    30  million   Nigerians  do    not    brush    twice    a day,  but  only  brush  once,  which  is  in  the  mornings,    and   that  is   definitely   not  a  good  oral  health    behaviour.  The    ideal  thing  he  said,  is  to  brush  twice  daily  and  he  urged  parents  to  teach  their  children  to  do  so.

Also   speaking   at the   event,  Dr (Mrs.) ‘Bimpe   Adebiyi,  Head, Dentistry Division & Chief Dental Officer, Federal Ministry of Health, in  her paper titled: “Current Trends In Oral Health Care In Nigeria: Forging The Way Forward” said  that   Oral health means more than healthy teeth and absence of disease.

The mouth is the gateway (eat, drink, speak, laugh, kiss, etc) and the mirror (diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis) of the body.

“Research has shown an increase in the prevalence of some preventable conditions such as dental caries, periodontal diseases, Noma, oral cancers, oral manifestations of HIV infection.” She added.

Adebiyi highlighted the vision and mission of the “National Oral Health Policy”. She stated that the vision is to improve the Oral Health of all Nigerians; and the mission is to develop and promote an accessible, effective, efficient, and sustainable Oral Health System which focuses on prevention, early detection and prompt treatment of oral diseases.

She explained that the policy has set the tone for a change in the oral health system, noting that the work is enormous but the goal is certainly achievable; therefore it is time for Nigerians to work together to lift the oral health status of Nigerians.

August 13, 2011