Poor nutrition leads to other diseases

Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, June 16, 2004

Thank you for your June 7 editorial on childhood obesity. I would like to add that poor nutrition not only leads to obesity, but also puts kids at high risk for oral disease. Oral disease is the most common chronic childhood disease, can be extremely painful and has been associated with diminished school performance. And, like obesity, oral disease has been linked to diabetes and heart disease.

Oral disease is a serious problem in our state and we must make prevention a priority. Anyone who cares about the health of children must also pay attention to their oral health.

Dianne Riter, MPH

Everett