Hudson Kuteesa<\/b><\/p>\n
Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong><\/span>An estimated 57.1 percent of adult Rwandans have never visited a dentist yet it is recommended that a person should visit a dentist at least twice a year.<\/p>\n The estimates are part of the findings of a study carried out by the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC) on the risk factors of Non-Communicable Diseases in Rwanda.<\/p>\n Done in the form of a household survey, the study gathered information through face-to-face interviews, physical measurements, and biochemical analysis. It used a sample population of 5,676 people aged between 18 and 69 years, from all the four provinces of Rwanda.<\/p>\n According to the survey, 57.1 percent of the respondents said they had never received dental care. Of these, 61.6 percent were men while 52.6 percent were women.<\/p>\n Presenting the results of the survey, the Manager of the Non-Communicable Diseases Division at RBC, Dr. Francois Uwinkindi, said oral health is an area that needs emphasis so that people will pay more attention to it.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople don\u2019t visit dentists on a regular basis. The regulations say we should at least visit a dentist once a year, but people go there when they are having pain and we are not able to chew,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n According to Dr. Bede Bana, a dentist working with the University of Rwanda\u2019s dental clinic, a person should visit a dentist once every six months for checkups.<\/p>\n The survey also showed that only 19.3 percent of people in Rwanda clean their teeth at least twice a day.<\/p>\n The World Health Organisation (WHO) says tooth brushing with fluoride-containing toothpaste, twice in a day, should be encouraged.<\/p>\n Oral diseases, according to the WHO, are among the most common Non-Communicable Diseases worldwide, affecting an estimated 3.5 billion people.<\/p>\n The burden of oral diseases and other Non-Communicable Diseases can be reduced through public health interventions by addressing common risk factors.<\/p>\n The interventions include promoting a well-balanced diet low in sugars and high in fruit and vegetables, and favouring water as the main drink; stopping use of all forms of tobacco, including chewing of areca nuts; reducing alcohol consumption; and encouraging use of protective equipment when doing sports and travelling on bicycles and motorcycles.<\/p>\n For More News And Analysis About Rwanda<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hudson Kuteesa Africa-Press – Rwanda. An estimated 57.1 percent of adult Rwandans have never visited a dentist yet it is recommended that a person should visit a dentist at least twice a year. The estimates are part of the findings of a study carried out by the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC) on the risk factors […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":46205,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,30],"tags":[760,763,758],"class_list":["post-46206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-rwanda","tag-rwanda"],"yoast_head":"\n