A big thank you to Dr. John Pate and the staff of Westwood Dental Group! They are making a massive difference through their Dentistry from the Heart program. Not only for people’s oral health, but in their overall health and wellbeing. In 2014 they gave out over $100,000 in free dental work. WOW!

  
The Guelph and Wellington Task Force for Poverty Elimination recently released a report on barriers to accessing oral health care in our city. It’s HERE.

They conducted a survey of people with low income. Here are some of the findings:

Of those who said they have oral health needs:

• 58% said it affects eating

• 50% said it affects how they feel about themselves

• 22% said it causes or complicates other health problems

• 41% have pain

• 27% said it affects their talking and 26% said it affects social relationships

• 16% said it affects their ability to get a job

So if you can’t afford to visit the dentist, it doesn’t just cause poor oral health – it affects overall health, social relationships, self esteem, and even the ability to get a job.

A huge thanks to all the sponsors too!