The whole of October is dedicated to National Dental Hygiene – making now a perfect moment to raise awareness of the importance of good oral health.

While good daily habits can help improve your smile, great oral hygiene can prevent more than just tooth decay, gum disease, and tooth loss.

So, read how you could raise awareness about the importance of good oral health among your employees. And discover why it could be worth ensuring your benefits package includes a plan to help your team take care of all their dental needs. 

Poor dental hygiene can lead to serious health conditions

It’s highly unlikely that you know anyone who enjoys a visit to their dentist. But, since we all know an apple a day doesn’t actually keep the dentist away, visiting your dentist or hygienist regularly could help prevent potentially serious health problems arising.

For example, poor dental hygiene can lead to:

• Heart problems
• Strokes
• Diabetes
• Lung disease[1]

And yet, it’s becoming more and more difficult to access NHS dentist treatment. In fact, of the few people lucky enough to currently see an NHS dentist, 61% would consider going private if they were struggling to get an appointment or needed urgent treatment[2].

That’s why adding a dentist plan to your employee benefits package could really make a difference to your team.

Adding employee dental treatment to your benefits package could improve productivity and absenteeism

While you may not think dental hygiene has much influence on workplace productivity, the statistics tell another story.

According to the 2023 Oral Healthcare Report from Denplan, 25% of Brits, and 33% of people aged 18 to 55, said they’d taken time off work due to dental pain. And 21% of those taking time off needed to take up to a whole week off[3].

Plus, more than half of survey respondents or their dependants needed emergency dental treatment in the last year. 33% of employees took time off to get treatment. Another 16% took time off to take a dependant for treatment[4].

You can choose a group dental policy that allows immediate family members to be included in an employees’ cover. And, since childhood tooth decay requiring extraction is the number one reason for child hospital admission in the UK, a dentist plan could make a big difference to families too[5].

All this to say, it’s more important than ever to support your employees with a dental insurance plan. 

A dental health plan could prove a powerful addition to your benefits package

Investing in your employees by helping them and their immediate family to maintain healthy teeth and gums could help to:

• Improve health – Easier access to dental appointments could encourage employees to get regular check-ups and maintain their health, helping to prevent or reduce the risk of future health issues.
• Reduce absenteeism – As noted above, healthy employees are less likely to take time off work, reducing sickness absence.
• Attract and retain talent – For some, dental insurance may prove important enough to help you attract and retain employees.
• Identify health issues early – Regular appointments with a dentist and/or hygienist could help identify potentially major health issues early, which could increase the chances of a successful outcome and reduce time away from work.

Get in touch

One simple way to implement dental health insurance to your team is through our employee benefits platform: Bionic-Benefits.

Contact us today to explore how our dental insurance solution can support your employees and enhance your benefits package. Email info.wp@titanwh.com or call us on 0800 048 0150.

Please note

The information contained in this article is based on the opinion of Titan Wealth Planning and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation for any investment or retirement strategy.