Allegheny College Pre-Dental Society to Host Children’s Dental Health Fair

Allegheny College’s student-run Pre-Dental Society is teaming up with Meadville Medical Center and other local organizations to host the third annual Children’s Dental Health Fair.

The free, interactive fair for children ages 15 and under will be held on Saturday, Feb. 18 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Lew Davies Community Building, 1034 Park Ave., Meadville. The fair is being held as part of National Children’s Dental Health Awareness Month in February.

The goal of the fair is to provide a fun experience for the whole family while also giving children and adults techniques and resources that promote dental health. The fair will include demonstrations of good hygiene techniques; community-based oral health resources; health food demonstrations; free games, prizes and giveaways; and a visit by children’s magician and balloon artist Magic Steve. All children who attend will receive a bag with a toothbrush, toothpaste and floss.

The idea for the fair came out of data compiled from the Meadville Community Health Needs Assessment, which Allegheny students conducted in collaboration with representatives from Meadville Medical Center. The assessment found indicators that poor oral health among children may be underreported in the community, and that poor oral health might be more problematic than the data show, among other findings. In 2016, the fair provided dental education to 75 children and their families.

For more information, visit https://meadvillechildrensdentalhealthfair.wordpress.com, or contact Sarah Cole at coles@allegheny.edu or Onalee Sortino at sortinoo@allegheny.edu.