Winners of 2023 ‘Share Your Smile with Alabama’ competition announced, third graders’ smiles promote good oral health

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MONTGOMERY-The Oral Health Office of the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) announces the winners of the sixth annual smile photo contest for third grade students in Alabama.

A boy and a girl were selected from photo submissions as the overall winners of the “Share Your Smile with Alabama” campaign for 2023. Chosen were Braylen Colvin who attends LEAD Academy in Montgomery and Cailyn Patterson who attends Forest Avenue Academic Magnet School in Montgomery. The third graders will be spotlighted in ADPH marketing campaigns to promote children’s oral health in the state.

February is National Children’s Dental Health Month 2023. The theme for this year is “Brush. Floss. Smile.” State Dental Health Director Dr. Tommy Johnson said, “We sponsor this annual contest to bring attention to children’s oral health care and to remind everyone of the need to brush and floss their teeth daily. We also want to encourage community water fluoridation and promote the FDA-approved HPV vaccine for children beginning at 9 years of age.”
Good oral health is especially important for children. Cavities (also known as caries or tooth decay) are among the most common chronic conditions of children in the United States. Untreated dental cavities can cause pain and infections that may lead to problems with eating, speaking, playing and learning. Children who have poor oral health often miss more school and receive lower grades than their fellow students.

The ADPH Oral Health Office is dedicated to preventing dental disease for Alabama’s citizens by promoting and developing quality, cost-effective community and school-based preventive, educational and early treatment programs which emphasize the elimination of oral health disparities.

Media Release/Tommy Johnson, D.M.D./ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH

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