Butter goes with croissants like pronunciation goes with learning a new language.

Which means, as a kindergarten English teacher, I spend a lot of time demonstrating proper pronunciation and ensuring it’s repeated correctly.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is I spend a lot of time looking at little kids’ mouths.

And what’s inside a mouth? Teeth.

But instead of rows of healthy baby teeth, I was seeing something absolutely shocking: no teeth, black teeth, pointy ends, inflamed gums, and generally eroded stumps.

What is going on here?

An article from 2023 reported up to 86.4% of Vietnamese children aged 6-8 have tooth decay.

READ THAT SENTENCE AGAIN!

This is a huge problem.

For reference, about 45% of all children in the U. S. experience tooth decay.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I hate the dentist as much as the next person, but I also want to keep my teeth and in that pursuit understand the importance of keeping them healthy.

So why is dental health so poor among kids specially?

I’m sure I’m just scratching the surface here, but there seem to be a few reasons:

• Baby teeth fall out, so parents see them as expendable and don’t prioritize caring for them.
• Dental hygiene is not as emphasized in Vietnamese culture; “…both adults and children in Vietnam are not in the habit of brushing their teeth twice a day.”
• Cultural pride; if parents didn’t brush their teeth as a kid, or brush their teeth now, why should they brush their kids’. And when people say something to them directly on the subject, it’s often taken as rude.
• Cost, going to the dentist is expensive – in part because there are very few dentists. There is one dentist in Vietnam for every 25,000 people, whereas in developed countries, the rate is one per 1,000-2,000 people.

Now, why is dental hygiene in minors important?

• Enamel is much thinner and softer on baby teeth, making them at greater risk of decay.
• Baby teeth help children to eat and speak.
• Baby teeth also guide the permanent adult teeth into position.

This is an epidemic, and I’m not sure what I can do.

Yet.