Why does our community need the St. David's Dental Program?

 Just look at the data:

• Dental disease in children is five times more common than asthma and seven times more likely than hay fever.
• 50 percent of tooth decay remains untreated in low-income children, resulting in pain, dysfunction, poor appearance and children who are underweight.
• More than 51 million school hours are lost each year nationwide to dental-related illness.
• 23 million children nationwide are without dental insurance coverage. Uninsured children are 2.5 times less likely than insured children to receive care.

Failure to prevent dental problems has long-term adverse effects that are consequential and costly. In particular, unchecked dental disease compromises children’s ability to learn, to develop positive self-esteem, to eat and to speak.

One Del Valle student admitted, “I just didn’t know that chewing tobacco would hurt my teeth.” Our mobile dental staff helped this young teen understand the dangers of using smokeless tobacco, encouraging him to quit before more of his teeth are destroyed or cancer develops.

The St. David’s Dental Program continues to serve the Central Texas community by providing free dental treatment for thousands of children and adults, coupled with oral health education for schools and agencies.  We are focused on eradicating this preventable disease in Central Texas.