tailieunhanh - Oral Health In America: A Report Of The Surgeon General

The efforts of public health agencies at the federal, state, and local levels to prepare for what could happen in the future are largely invisible until there is an emerging threat, such as the recent SARS outbreak, or a dramatic event, such as the anthrax attacks of 2001. Through this effort, the . Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) intends to provide the best available and most essential up-to-date health-related facts and background information that will be needed in the event of a terrorist attack or public health emergency. In addition, HHS hopes to reveal the commitment and often hidden complexity of the public health domain to news people. | Oral Health in America A Report of the Surgeon General Department of Health and Human Services . PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE V L Ạ o z National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research O 77EA Suggested Citation . Department of Health and Human Services. Oral Health in America A Report of the Surgeon General. Rockville MD . Department of Health and Human Services National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research National Institutes of Health 2000. ii Message from Donna E. Shalala Secretary of Health and Human Services The intent of this first-ever Surgeon General s Report on Oral Health is to alert Americans to the full meaning of oral health and its importance to general health and well-being. Great progress has been made in reducing the extent and severity of common oral diseases. Successful prevention measures adopted by communities individuals and oral health professionals have resulted in marked improvements in the nation s oral and dental health. The terms oral health and general health should not be interpreted as separate entities. Oral health is integral to general health this report provides important reminders that oral health means more than healthy teeth and that you cannot be healthy without oral health. Further the report outlines existing safe and effective disease prevention measures that everyone can adopt to improve oral health and prevent disease. However not everyone is experiencing the same degree of improvement. This Surgeon General s report addresses the inequities and disparities that affect those least able to muster the resources to achieve optimal oral health. For whatever the reason ignoring oral health problems can lead to needless pain and suffering causing devastating complications to an individual s wellbeing with financial and social costs that significantly diminish quality of life and burden American society. For a third decade the nation has developed a plan for the prevention of disease and the promotion of health .