Pepsodent joins forces with the India Dental Association

Oral health, a serious and generally ignored health concern in India, with periodontal diseases affecting 90-95% of the population in some form or the other, the new programme will help to improve oral health education across the country.

This project is part of a wider global collaboration between Pepsodent’s parent company, Unilever and FDI, the international organisation which represents nearly one million dentists globally. This unique partnership aims to increase oral health education and promotion in countries in both the developed and developing world. The Pepsodent-FDI collaboration, established in 2005, now operates 42 projects in 38 countries.

Increasing awareness on dental hygiene

The new partnership in India will build on existing programmes that Pepsodent and the IDA have been running in schools targeting behaviour change amongst children. Going forward, the programme will focus on increasing awareness of good oral habits and concentrate on the importance of twice daily brushing, and particularly night brushing amongst children. The Oral Health initiative will feature many practical elements including dental check-ups, live demonstrations with audio-visual aids and the distribution of oral health educational materials. It will also involve schoolteachers and rural health workers working to educate children about the benefits of better oral health and hygiene.

In a country where 90-95% of the population suffers from periodontal diseases and an alarming 60-80% of children are afflicted by dental caries its hardly shocking to note thatover 80 per cent of us have never visited a dentist and only 2 per cent visit a dentist regularly. However what may be markedly shocking to note is that Oral Cancers constitute over 50% of all body cancers. And yet oral health is not considered a health issue at all by a majority of the population*.

Priya Nair, Oral Care, Category Head,Hindustan Unilever, said:“We’re very excited about working with our partner, the IDA. Both the organisations are committed to making a sustainable difference in communities all across India. We’ve already had some fantastic successes in a number of oral health projects that have been running for several years. Our Pepsodent Oral Health Improvement Programme launched in 2006, for example, has helped to educate 1.6 million children about night brushing. We look forward to building on these strong foundations.”

Dental experts speak

According to Habib Benzian, FDI Global Project Leader, “We’re delighted to see the Unilever and FDI partnership network grow further and we welcome India on board. The collaboration is entering an exciting phase in which we are building on established projects, using what we’ve learned and the networks we have cultivated to ensure that these, and new projects, are as successful and effective as possible. We look forward to working with our new colleagues across the partnership network.”

Dr. M.C.Mohan, President of the IDA said, “People should understand the benefits of a preventive oral healthcare routine. Prevention is definitely better than cure”. Dr. Dhoble, Hon Secretary, IDA, lauded the joint-initiative saying, “With the support and investment provided by Pepsodent, we can help even more Indians, especially children, understand the importance of oral care and prevent oral health problems in later life.”

*source: FDI & www.bio-medicine.org

Pepsodent

Pepsodent, launched in 1993, was the first toothpaste with a unique anti-bacterial agent to address the consumer need of checking germs even hours after brushing.

Pepsodent packs included a Germ Indicator in February-May 2002, which allowed consumers to see the efficacy in fighting germs for themselves. As a follow-up, in October 2002, Pepsodent offered Dental Insurance to all its consumers to demonstrate the confidence the company has in the technical superiority of the product.

Pepsodent connects directly with kids and their parents. Pepsodent has always worked in the direction of an overall awareness of dental health. The relaunch campaign in October 2003 widened the context to "sweet and sticky" food and leveraged the truth that children do not rinse their mouths every time they eat, demonstrating that this makes their teeth vulnerable to germ attack.

Pepsodent's most recent campaign aims at educating consumers on the need for germ protection through the night.Pepsodent also includes a range of toothbrushes.

Hindustan Unilever Limited

HUL is India's largest Fast Moving Consumer Goods Company, touching the lives of two out of three Indians. HUL’s mission is to “add vitality to life” through its presence in over 20 distinct categories in Home & Personal Care Products and Foods & Beverages. The company meets everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene, and personal care, with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life.
www.hll.com

The World Dental Federation (FDI)

The FDI World Dental Federation is the independent, worldwide voice of dentistry. Founded in Paris in 1900 it is a federation of 154 National Dental Associations and 35 international Dental Associations, and represents more than 900,000 individual dentists. The promotion and improvement of oral health worldwide is a key activity of the FDI. Today, there are huge differences in the state of oral health between developed and developing countries, in terms of health status, availability, access and affordability of oral health services. The FDI maintains an active dialogue with the World Health Organization and other international organisations, governments, non-governmental organisations and the dental industry to work and advocate for better oral health.
www.fdiworldental.org