Turkey

In 2001, Turkey was chosen as the first target country of a Toothfriendly caries prevention program. Why Turkey?

According to a WHO objective, 80% of age group 6 should be caries free. In Turkey, 83% of children aged 6 already have caries.

In Turkey, only one out of four people brush their teeth regularly.

97 adults out of 100 in age group 30-34 have caries

When people were asked why they do not brush their teeth, 77% of all respondents indicate that they were not taught tooth brushing when they were children.

Toothfriendly Foundation's caries prevention program was launched in Turkey in 2002. The program aims at making oral health behaviour a part of daily routine for thousands of schoolchildren. The Foundation provides all the educational material needed and trains the educators who visit schoolclasses on rugular basis.

In our Disler Yolunda program, children from underprivileged families receive a free treatment by a dentist. This visit at the dentist marks the end of the training period and symbolizes the start of the personal responsibility of taking care of the teeth.

In 2010, some Turkish University Dental Insitutes have taken over large parts of the fluoridation program. Last year, the program reached over 17’800 children, of which 870 were directly treated by the Turkish Toothfriendly team in the city of Istanbul. In addition, the Foundation supplied free toothbrushes and fluoride toothpaste via its parter company Banat, and provided the volunteering dentists and teachers with educational material.