The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) Oral Health Office is excited to announce the eighth annual “Share Your Smile with Alabama” statewide photo contest. This competition is a great opportunity for Alabama parents and guardians to showcase their child’s smile.

This contest is open to children living in Alabama who are
· Third grade students OR
· Children 8 to 10 years of age who are homeschooled

For official rules and application form:
Go tohttps://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/oralhealth/contest.html

· Entries are accepted through November 8, 2024.
· There is no entry fee.

February is National Children’s Dental Health Month. The ADPH Oral Health Office designates the month to endorse the benefits of preventive dental visits for children, encourage community water fluoridation, and promote the FDA-approved HPV vaccine for children beginning at 9 years of age.

A girl and a boy will be selected from photo submissions as the winners. The pair will be highlighted in ADPH marketing campaigns to promote children’s oral health and will be featured in a statewide news conference on January 7, 2025.

State Dental Health Director Dr. Tommy Johnson said, “We want to remind everyone that healthy oral health habits lead to healthy smiles, and tooth decay is almost 100 percent preventable. We are sponsoring this annual contest to bring attention to the need for children’s oral health care.”

The ADPH Oral Health Office is dedicated to preventing dental disease for Alabama’s citizens by promoting and developing quality, cost-effective community and school-based preventive, educational and early treatment programs which emphasize elimination of oral health disparities.