October 16 is World Cavity-Free Future Day – an important day in the fight against the world’s most common chronic disease

As dental professionals, we spend a large part of our daily lives fighting caries. As we focus on caries prevention and management in individual patients, it’s easy to forget that we are also fighting the world’s most common chronic disease. The disease affects virtually all adults, and between 60% and 90% of school children, most of whom are not aware that early stages of caries can be prevented and controlled.

October 16th has been designated World Cavity-Free Future Day

16th October 2016 marks the inaugural World Cavity-Free Future Day, a global initiative to spread international awareness and engage communities around the world in the global fight against dental caries. The day will include community outreach events, free oral care consultations, webinars and other education efforts. The global campaign also stresses the importance of brushing twice a day for two minutes and reducing sugar intake. This includes sugars in both unhealthy foods, such as sweets or fizzy drinks, as well as “hidden sugars”, found in healthy foods such as fruit, vegetables, or yogurt.

The initiative is sponsored by the global Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (ACFF), a growing global community of patients, dental and other health professionals, families, public policy experts, and other stakeholders, including Colgate-Palmolive. Together these partners are committed to fighting cavities and want to significantly improve the lives of thousands of children and adults around the world, to secure a cavity-free future for future generations.

The Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (www.AllianceforaCavityFreeFuture.org) is a non-profitable charitable organisation that encourages global collaborative action to deliver more comprehensive caries prevention and management.