The Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole has revealed that the mouth is the gateway to the body since it serves as a useful tool in detecting early signs and symptoms of endemic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, measles, syphilis and diabetes.Prof Adewole stressed that oral health diseases affect the overall productivity of an individual and the society at large if not addressed.
The Minister, who was represented at the occasion by the Director, Public Services, Dr. Balami Wapada said the Ministry will flag off training of community health extension workers, junior community health extension workers and other health workers at the primary healthcare level in the North-West and South-South geopolitical zones to enable them identify and manage common oral conditions.
The Minister said, the ministry has signed a MoU to reach out to 10 million Nigerian school children. “In the last 12 months we have successfully reached out to over 400 schools and 2 million school children in Lagos, Abia, Rivers, FCT and Delta states.
“During this period, we trained school teachers, the Pepsodent Brush/Day, the Night School Children campaigns, free distribution of Pepsodent, free distribution of Pepsodent toothpaste and Close-up toothbrushes to the school children.”
