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Community Water Fluoridation:
Changing Perceptions for the Public Good

The Santa Fe Group board members Drs. Judi Haber, Nicholas G. Mosca, and Linda C. Niessen, co-author an opinion piece in Compendium on the essential role of community in improving oral health equity. They argue for deeper partnerships between clinicians, public health, and communities to rebuild trust, advance prevention, and center care around people’s lived realities.

MUST READS

Dental Education Faces a Perfect Storm

The NYU College of Dentistry explores how rising costs, faculty shortages, and evolving technologies are converging to challenge dental education in the United States. This reflection from Rick Valachovic calls for renewed collaboration, innovation, and public investment to ensure the next generation of oral health professionals can meet future needs.

Refugees need — and deserve — dental care

This STAT News feature highlights how refugees worldwide often live with untreated pain and chronic oral disease for years, as dental care remains out of reach in humanitarian settings. Global advocates and researchers are urging policymakers to integrate oral health into refugee health programs, framing access to care as a matter of dignity and human rights.

Dentsply Sirona Calls to Action on Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Dentsply Sirona spotlights the vital connection between oral health and cancer care. The company emphasizes the importance of early oral assessments and preventive care for patients undergoing breast cancer treatment, helping reduce complications and improve quality of life during recovery.

Delta Dental report: Preventive dental visits strong as at-home oral health care softens

Delta Dental’s 2025 findings reveal that while fewer Americans are brushing and flossing consistently at home, preventive dental visits remain strong. The report offers encouraging signs that oral health is being prioritized at the community level, even as habits shift post-pandemic.

Take action on rural oral health, ADA urges

The American Dental Association calls for a united effort to address rural oral health disparities through workforce incentives, tele-dentistry expansion, and mobile clinic support. The ADA’s message is clear: geography should never determine access to a healthy smile.

AROUND THE WORLD

Water fluoridation cut tooth decay in Queensland children, study shows, but most councils have decided against it

A fresh study from Australia’s Queensland reveals that water fluoridation dropped tooth decay rates in 5- to 10-year-olds from 49.5 % to 38.8 %, but surprisingly, most local councils continue to opt out. This story spotlights the clash between evidence and policy — and raises questions about how communities decide which preventive strategies to adopt.

Length: 00:12:57 minutes

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) speaks with practitioners working to improve oral health access in remote regions of Nigeria. The discussion highlights the creative ways communities and health professionals are overcoming barriers in infrastructure, education, and affordability to bring essential dental care to underserved populations.

REASON TO SMILE

These Dental Patients Were Left Behind. These Clinics Changed That

Tufts Special Care Dental Clinics are transforming the way patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities receive care. Serving more than 7,000 patients across Massachusetts, these clinics provide compassionate, individualized dental services that restore confidence and dignity to those too often left behind.

Dental Care is a Human Right: Empowering the Oral Health Community to Engage in Advocacy & Action for the Well-being of LGBTQIA+ Community

October 20 to 24, 2025