Are you afraid of going to the dentist? You are not alone. One-fifth of Swedes suffer from dental anxiety, and it can have devastating consequences. Therefore, a day is now established to address this fear, where one of Sweden's leading dental professors joins forces with several well-known ambassadors.
The initiative for Dental Fear Awareness Day, which falls on August 24th, marks the starting point for an annually recurring day aimed at addressing the fear of going to the dentist. The purpose of the day is to improve dental health in Sweden overall and thus public health in general. This includes spreading knowledge about how common the problem of dental anxiety is and how closely related poor dental health is to our overall health. Among the well-known personalities recruited to raise awareness of the day are Margaux Dietz, Filip Hammar & Fredrik Wikingsson, Kristoffer Triumf, among others.
What works to alleviate dental anxiety and get those who are afraid of the dentist to go is having support from the surroundings and even having someone accompany them to the dentist. Therefore, dental anxiety concerns everyone because even those who are not afraid of the dentist themselves have someone close to them who is afraid of dental treatment.
A major problem related to dental anxiety is that people generally do not openly discuss it, especially not men. Almost one in five adults in Sweden has dental anxiety, according to a recent study by the University of Gothenburg. The research-active dental chain Aqua Dental's oral health report shows that 10 percent have avoided going to the dentist due to fear.
"It is important to dare to talk about the problem. Then you can more easily get help from both family and friends as well as experts in the field. If we all learn to take care of our teeth and regularly visit the dentist, we can also promote our general health and live longer, healthier, and happier lives," says Björn Klinge, professor, researcher in periodontology, and senior advisor to Aqua Dental.
Aqua Dental is behind the initiative to try to reduce the common fear of going to the dentist and thus help more people feel better.
"The fact that so many people avoid the dentist can be serious in the long run because dental health is closely related to, among other things, cardiovascular diseases. Research shows that poor dental health can also have social consequences and cause mental health problems. Taken together, this can shorten life by a number of years," says Björn Klinge.
"Therefore, we want to establish this theme day as a broad initiative and hope to include the entire industry and the public, not just us at Aqua Dental. The idea is then to expand with an international Dental Anxiety Day and raise the issue globally as well," says Rikard Virta, founder of Aqua Dental and initiator of Dental Fear Awareness Day.
An effective way to address the fear is to bring a friend or relative to the dentist. Therefore, Aqua Dental will open its clinics to dental anxiety patients and their companions. As a first step, it may be enough to have a conversation with the dentist to get used to the environment, or - for those who dare to go further - with an examination.
To encourage these patients, Aqua Dental will offer a free first visit - without any obligations (value SEK 995). Appointments for examinations can be booked at spolarädslan.se, and the offer is valid from August 24th until October 30th.
Information
Dental Fear Awareness Day falls on August 24th and will annually highlight the issues surrounding dental anxiety. The initiative will be promoted under the hashtag #spolarädslan, and more information on how your dental anxiety-stricken friend can book a free examination is available at spolarädslan.se. Booking is open from August 24th until October 30th (up to a certain limit).
