A nation wide shortage means kids in 129 Nova Scotian schools won’t receive fluoride treatments this year.
According to Western Zone’s Director of Public Health Catherine Hebb, the supplier no longer manufactures the product.
Since 1998 students in grades primary through six at selected schools received fluoride rinse with the help of parent volunteers.
Hebb points out some municipal water supplies don’t add fluoride, but that’s not the only factor in deciding which schools receive the program.
“Do kids have food security? Are their parents able to afford those healthy foods? Do they have healthy food available in schools? All those multitude of factors will impact how healthy kid’s teeth are.”
Hebb says the department already had a plan in place for next year to move to a fluoride varnish applied by hygienists.
“It’s a challenge to get parents who are available weekly to do that. We’re really, really thankful to all the parents who have volunteered over the years, but we also thought, is there another way to do this that is more efficient?”
Hebb says the hygienists will visit the schools to apply fluoride varnish twice during the school year.
She anticipates the new program will be ready to roll out in September 2020.
Reported by: Ed Halverson
Twitter: @edwardhalverson
E-mail: halverson.ed@radioabl.ca
