[Report 1931] / School Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council.
- Cumberland County Council
- Date:
- 1931
Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Credit: [Report 1931] / School Medical Officer of Health, Cumberland County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![the iiioutli was in the hands ot one Sister, who personally saw that they brushed their teeth twice a week at least. Possibly some may have been more familiar with the tooth¬ brush than this figure would indicate. The non-resident pupils were found to be very bad dentally, and it seems to me to i)rove the diet theory goes a long way to explain this- phenomenon.” 19'2b liEPORT. In 192s the same satisfactory condition was obtained at the school inspection. Out of twenty Convent children examined only five required treatment, and even these were found to require treatment of only a very minor character. Clearly, regular healthy habits—such as plent\’ of sleep, coupled with a healthy diet—have a marked effect on the teeth. Sweets are hardly ever given, and fruit, on account of the expense, does not enter very greatly into the dietry. All the mouths were hygienic, in s])ite of minor defects. It would appear tiiat a jilain and sinqile mixed diet coupled with reasonably regular habits of health should be the aim of everyone who wishes to have bis body at the maximum of efficiency.” In 1931 the same satisfactory state of affairs was dis¬ covered, and the llev. Mother and Sisters are deserving of every praise for their care and devotion. The Convent children look very healthy, with shining, hajipy faces; their teeth are excellent, and they can be picked out as Convent inmates as they file by in the dental inspection. The day scholars in the school are anything but satisfactory from the dental point of view. The diet and habits remain as in previous reports, but there is this significant difference—that not one of the original children seen in 1921 is now in the Convent. Ne\^• children have aialved to take the ])lace of the origdnals, yet their teeth exhibit the same happy state of affairs. Surely this is beyond coincidence. Daily cleansing is important, undoubtedly, but it seems to prove that diet and regular habits are still more so, because it is questionable if these girls use the tooth-brush with very gi’eat regularity. In conclusion, the thanks of the Dental Staff are due- to all those headteachers who have so willingly co-operated with us in the past year. Such a large proportion of the success of any dental scheme rests with the headteacher](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b29132411_0053.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
