CREST HEALTHY SMILES 2010 AND THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GIVE KIDS A SMILE

NEW YORK, February 6, 2004 — As part of their continuing commitment to provide oral care access and education, Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 (CHS 2010) and The University of Southern California School of Dentistry (USCSD) provided free dental screenings and oral health education from their Neighborhood Mobile Clinic on Friday, February 6th to over 500 children at the 9th Street Elementary School in Los Angeles. This combined effort is part of the American Dental Association’s national “Give Kids A Smile” campaign to provide oral health services to children from underserved families who don’t have adequate access to oral health care.

“There is a great need for oral care access and education among children in our community, said Charles Goldstein, D.D.S., M.P.H, director of community outreach programs at USC School of Dentistry. “’Give Kids a Smile Day’ provides us with a great opportunity to make a difference in the lives of this city’s children and to provide them with care and education that will put them on the path to good oral health.”

The free services were held on Friday, February 6th from 9:00am to 2:00pm, at the 9th Street Elementary School, 820 Towne Avenue in Los Angeles. In addition to free screenings and oral health education, children who needed treatment were referred to USC for care. All children received free Crest oral care products, educational materials and T-shirts.

“Through “Give Kids a Smile Day” and our partnership with USC we will be able to further the Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 goal of improving the oral hygiene of children in the Los Angeles area with the treatment and education they need to create and maintain healthy smiles for life,” said Diane Dietz, marketing director for Crest. “We hope to make Give Kids A Smile a rallying cry that inspires society to do a better job of providing good oral health to all children, including and especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds,” said ADA President Eugene Sekiguchi, D.D.S..

The ADA created “Give Kids A Smile Day” to provide dental services to thousands of low-income children across the country who otherwise wouldn't receive care and to draw attention to the chronic degree of untreated dental disease in the nation's children. Over 34,000 dentists and dental team members at more than 2,000 sites across the country will take time from their practice to help underserved children who aren’t getting the oral health care they need.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
NEIGHBORHOOD MOBILE CLINIC
Established in March 2002, the van is dedicated to improving the oral health of inner-city school children in Los Angeles, many of whom have never before seen a dentist.

All dental students will rotate through this program and will provide screenings, oral health education, fluoride treatments and dental sealants to the posterior teeth of participating children. The program operates four days a week under the direction of Dr. Jennifer Holtzman, an assistant professor of clinical dentistry and the Director of this clinic.

Any children with treatment needs revealed during the delivery of preventive care will be referred to clinics in the area for follow-up, including the USC School of Dentistry Pediatric Dental Clinic. Planned follow-up exams on a sample of this population will assess the effectiveness of the program in reducing the number of decayed, missing and filled teeth.

In addition to introducing dental students to their roles as health educators, their involvement with the USC Neighborhood Mobile Clinic van encourages them to become leaders in their communities after graduation.

Backed by support from Los Angeles Care Health Plan and Crest Healthy Smiles 2010, the USC School of Dentistry Neighborhood Mobile Clinic provides preventive care and education to 1200 schoolchildren annually.

Major funding for this project also came from the Annenberg Foundation, a USC Neighborhood Outreach Grant and from individual donors to the USC Community Dentistry Fund, many of whom are former participants in the school's Mobile Clinic Program.

ABOUT CREST HEALTHY SMILES 2010
Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 is proud to be the national sponsor of the American Dental Association’s Give Kids a Smile program. As the only consumer products sponsor of the national access day, Crest has donated more than 460,000 dental kits which include Crest toothpaste, toothbrushes and educational materials.

In total, Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 will provide dental kits to over 900 Give Kids a Smile professional programs including over 200 dental societies.

Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 and the ADA share a common mission to increase access to affordable dental care to underserved communities in an effort to improve the oral health of children in need. Based on the principle that good oral health is integral to overall health, Crest Healthy Smiles 2010 combines the passionate vision of Crest with the resources of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the American Dental Association, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and other leading members of the dental community to affect real change in the state of the country’s oral health by 2010. Crest is also working with dental schools and local communities to sponsor mobile dental clinics that bring dental support to areas in need, as well as building upon its 40-year tradition of broad-based in-school health education programs which reach 90 percent of first graders. The program will reach more than 50 million children and their families over the next ten years.

A trusted leader in oral health, Crest was the first oral care brand to secure the ADA Seal of Acceptance for a clinically proven fluoride toothpaste, a major preventer of cavities. Since first introducing a fluoride toothpaste 40 years ago, it is estimated that Crest has helped prevent more than half a billion cavities in the United States. In addition, Crest created Crest Healthy Smiles 2010, a national outreach program designed to help improve the state of oral health in America. By providing education, tools, and increased access to dental professionals, Crest hopes to reach 50 million children and their families. Headquartered in Cincinnati, OH, Crest is owned and distributed by Procter & Gamble.

ABOUT THE ADA
The American Dental Association (ADA) is the nation's oldest national dental association, representing more than 140,000 members. It advocates for the public's health and promotes the art and science of dentistry.