Trident® and Smiles Across America® Team Up to Help Promote Healthy Mouths for Milwaukee Children

PARSIPPANY, N.J., Aug. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Tooth decay is the most common chronic childhood disease in America(1), yet over eight in ten (84%) American parents don't realize this(2).  Smiles Across America® (SAA), an Oral Health America program led in conjunction with Trident® gum, is pleased to welcome Milwaukee-based Smart Smiles into the SAA network.  This effort is part of an ongoing commitment by Oral Health America and Trident to help fight cavities among our nation's youth and together, will work to address the need for school-based and school-lined oral disease prevention services in the Milwaukee area.

With the help of Trident's $1.5 million dollar, three-year commitment to the SAA program, the organization currently supports dental services to over 250,000 children annually in underserved communities nationwide.  Today, with the help of Trident's contribution, the program will expand its reach to Milwaukee.

With the new partnership, Columbia St. Mary's Smart Smiles Program will increase the number of children they see helped by hiring a part-time oral health advocate that will be responsible for recruitment efforts at participating Smart Smiles schools with the goal of 50 percent participation at each school. Community leaders join Trident®, SAA, Smart Smiles, and Milwaukee partners today to bring attention to the importance of healthy mouths for children living in Milwaukee and nationwide.  Trident's financial commitment is critical to Oral Health America's expansion of services to dental programs in need of SAA-funding such as Smart Smiles.

"We are very pleased to welcome Columbia St. Mary's Smart Smiles Program to our family of care providers," said Beth Truett, president and CEO of Oral Health America. "Through our combined efforts, we can raise public awareness about the importance of healthy mouths for healthy lives, and proactively provide education and services in schools to prevent tooth decay for uninsured and underserved children."

Tooth decay affects nearly 50 percent of second graders and almost 80 percent of 17-year-olds(3). While a new survey by Trident finds that U.S. parents don't necessarily consider tooth decay a chronic childhood disease, they do recognize that if left untreated, it can negatively impact a child's well-being (63 percent), self-esteem (62 percent) and even concentration level (30 percent)(4).  Each year, over 51 million school hours are lost as a result of problems related to tooth decay(5). Trident's contributions help SAA link local governments, businesses and supporters with care providers and schools to help fight untreated oral disease in children and prevent the loss of pivotal hours in the classroom.  

"We are so excited to help expand the number of children nationally who currently receive oral health services and education in schools and extend our reach to now include Milwaukee," said Becky McAninch, Senior Brand Manager, Trident Marketing.  "Providing oral health care solutions to our nation's youth has always been a primary goal of Trident and we are pleased to continue funding partnerships like the one with Smart Smiles to help shed a light on the importance of pediatric oral health care in underserviced communities."  

Consumers can purchase any pack of Trident gum from September 13, 2010 through September 19, 2010 and five cents per pack will be donated to Smiles Across America(6).

Thanks to contributions from supporters like Trident, SAA provides its network with the funding and technical assistance in the areas of communication and coalition building that enables them to reach more underserved and uninsured children and address barriers to care—lack of resources and transportation, low literacy and language diversity. To support the partnership, Walgreens and Plackers® dental flossers have generously provided supplies for the Milwaukee program. To learn more about the Trident and Smiles Across America partnership, visit Trident on Facebook at www.facebook.com/tridentgum.

About Trident® Sugar-Free Gum

Trident gum has long been a pioneer in providing oral health benefits to consumers.  Trident was the first gum brand of its kind to undergo extensive long-term clinical testing in 1967 with studies showing that people who chewed Trident experienced significantly fewer cavities.  Most recently, the brand introduced Trident Xtra Care™ with Recaldent®, a great tasting sugar free gum that delivers superior strengthening power versus regular sugar-free chewing gum.  Today, Trident is the best selling chewing gum and sugar-free gum in the world(7) and a recent study shows that the brand continues to be recommended by four out of five dentists who would recommend sugar-free gum to their patients who chew gum(8).  

About Smiles Across America® (SAA)

SAA is a signature program created by Oral Health America, a national non-profit organization dedicated to changing lives by connecting communities with resources to increase access to care, education and advocacy.  SAA improves the health of elementary school students by supporting oral disease prevention services in school-based or school-linked settings, and demonstrating to communities that healthy mouths are integral to overall health.  For more information, visit http://www.oralhealthamerica.org.

About Kraft Foods

With annual revenues of approximately $48 billion, Kraft Foods is a global powerhouse in snacks, confectionery and quick meals. The company is the world's second largest food company, making delicious products for billions of consumers in more than 160 countries. The portfolio includes 11 iconic brands with revenues exceeding $1 billion – Oreo, Nabisco and LU biscuits; Milka and Cadbury chocolates; Trident gum; Jacobs and Maxwell House coffees; Philadelphia cream cheeses; Kraft cheeses, dinners and dressings; and Oscar Mayer meats. Approximately 70 brands generate annual revenues of more than $100 million. Kraft Foods (www.kraftfoodscompany.com; NYSE: KFT) is a member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Standard & Poor's 500, Dow Jones Sustainability Index and Ethibel Sustainability Index.

Survey Methodology

The Trident Survey was conducted by Kelton Research among 1,003 nationally representative American parents ages 18 and over with at least one child under age 18 in the household.  The survey was fielded between June 17 and June 22, 2010 using an e-mail invitation and an online survey. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation.  The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results.

In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.

(1)  Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General, May 2000

(2)  Trident:  Oral Health perception survey, June 2010

(3)  National Center for Health Statistics, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III

(4)  Trident:  Oral Health perception survey, June 2010

(5)  Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General, May 2000

(6)  Donation capped at $600,000.  Includes single packs, multipacks, bottles and club packs

(7)  2007 Euromonitor

(8)  Data on file

SOURCE Trident

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