Policy on Social Determinants of Children's Oral Health and Health Disparities

Policy statement

Recognizing the importance of the social determinants of oral health for children, the AAPD:

• supports broader policies and programs that help to alleviate poverty and social inequalities.
• encourages dentists and the oral health care team to collect a social history from patients, provide anticipatory guidance that is sensitive to SDH, and connect patients with helpful resources (eg, social service organizations, food banks) when needed.
• supports interprofessional educational approaches to train students as well as practicing dentists and health professionals on the SDH.
• endorses interdisciplinary approaches to improve oral health that account for social determinants of chronic diseases.
• supports additional research to understand mechanisms underlying the social determinants of oral health.