Little Nathaniel Castro Galapati won The Children’s Centre’s ‘Smile’ competition which was organised as part of National Smile Month. Parents were asked to send in photos of their children smiling and all of the competition entries were uploaded to the charity’s Facebook page. Visitors to the page were asked to vote for their favourite to determine a winner. Nathaniel received the most votes and he won a location sitting with well known portrait photographer Marianne McCourt. When the photo shoot is completed Nathaniel and his mum Valerie will choose their favourite image and Marianne will present them with a mounted 16 x12 inch photo. The smile competition was organised to coincide with National Smile month during which The Children’s Centre teamed up with the Department of Health to promote dental health. Danni Mottram, Healthier Outcomes Worker at The Children’s Centre, and Community Dental Nurse Patricia Newson, visited primary schools across the Island to make sure children were aware of the benefits of brushing their teeth and how calcium in their diet can improve dental health. During the National Smile Month sessions children also learnt how using a fluoride toothpaste can prevent decay and that the main cause of decay is not the amount of sugar and acid in their diet but how often sugary and acidic food and drinks are consumed. Children were encouraged to swap sugary drinks for no sugar alternatives. Danni and Patricia also used a cuddly toy hippo called Flossie and a giant toothbrush to show children how they should clean their teeth. In 2008/2009 the Isle of Man took part in a dental survey jointly co-ordinated by the North West Public Health Observatory, the Dental Observatory, the Department of Health in England and the British Association for the Study of Community Dentistry. The survey showed that in England 33.4% of 12-year-olds had experienced tooth decay compared to 38.6% in the Isle of Man. Surveys have also shown that more than 50 per cent of the Island’s five-year-olds have tooth decay. - ENDS -