A married couple, who are both dentists, are taking their skills outside the surgery to improve the oral health of thousands of impoverished children in both the UK and South Africa – inspired by the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

Dr Linda Greenwall and Dr Henry Cohen, from Hampstead Garden Suburb in north-west London, train teachers to supervise teeth-brushing through their charities the Dental Wellness Trust and the Dental Wellness Foundation, as well as supplying toothbrushes and toothpaste.

Greenwall, who spearheads the projects, told the JC: "In the UK, there are 48,000 children per year who have their rotten teeth removed under general anaesthetic.” 

Tooth extractions are the biggest primary reason for hospital admissions for children in the UK and Greenwall said that the cause of declining oral health among disadvantaged communities was three-fold. “There is social deprivation, a lack of information and also the big impact of sugar.”

This is exacerbated by a huge shortage of available NHS dentists, which is at its lowest number in a decade, and, according to an article in the Guardian, 90 per cent of dentists are refusing to take on new adult patients or to see a child unless a parent is signed up as a private patient.

Supported by her husband and one of their four sons, Joseph, who is also a dentist, Greenwall’s LiveSmart toothbrushing programme in the UK covers Cricklewood in north-west London and Luton in Hertfordshire.

A team from the Dental Wellness Foundation at a UK school. Dr Linda Greenwall (front row, right); Dr Henry Cohen (back row, right) (Photo: Linda Greenwall)

What was key, said Greenwall, was how their teacher training "impacts the children to take responsibility for their own health" .

Greenwall also arranges free check-up visits by volunteer dentists and dental students, who screen the children for dental problems.

The initiative has been welcomed by school staff, as well as pupils and parents. A deputy head of one of the Cricklewood schools said: “One hundred and fifty kids see the dentist for a check-up here. It's fantastic. It's the only opportunity that they are going to get to see a dentist for oral health screening and assessment."

The UK project is modelled on a similar one which was set up in 2013 in South Africa, where the couple are from.

Designed for use in townships, in particular Khayelitsha near Cape Town, the oral health intervention impacts 23,000 schoolchildren in the area, said Greenwall.

According to the charity, in the Western Cape, 70 per cent of children under the age of six have at least one decayed tooth, whilst 85 per cent of children aged between 12 and 15 suffer from tooth decay.

Their programme constitutes the training of group leaders called "Toothbrush Mamas ", who supervise children during daily teeth brushing and also teach them about nutritional meals. Due to poverty, most children do not have toothbrushes at home so these are provided by the charity.

Dentist Dr Henry Cohen at one of the Dental Wellness Trust's clinics (Photo: Linda Greenwall)

Some years after Greenwall established the South African programme, two volunteer dentists approached her, saying how much poverty they had observed while working in the UK. This, said Greenwall, gave her the impetus to see how similar work could be implemented here too.

After conducting thorough research to pinpoint the most deprived schools, the programme was launched in the UK eight years ago. Their work, said Greenwall, “includes support for refugee children from 30 different countries".

Greenwall attributed her drive to wanting to improve children’s oral hygiene to the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. “He says that on your Hebrew birthday, one should think of what one can do to make the world a better place. I thought about this on my birthday and concluded that [contributing to children’s oral health] was what I wanted to do.”

While conceding that the work was challenging, she said: “Tzedakah is in our Jewish neshama (soul). We all need to be involved in this.”

Dr Linda Greenwall (right) and her son Joseph, who is a member of her dental outreach team (Photo: Linda Greenwall)

Greenwall's husband has given his backing throughout. Dr Cohen told the JC: "The whole charity has been Linda’s brainchild. As her husband and colleague, I have given her 100 per cent support, whether that’s doing clinics abroad, teaching or logistical support. But all the administration and management has been on Linda’s shoulders, whether it’s fundraising, leadership, arranging conferences, lectures and dinners for the charity. "

Cohen added: "Many of us give money to numerous charities, and I realised that with the time and money that we give and the help from many friends and family here in the UK, Linda and I could reach out to thousands. I feel that getting personally involved with charity gives one more satisfaction than when one just writes out a cheque."

Greenwall said that all the protocols adopted by The Dental Wellness Trust and The Dental Wellness Foundation had been based on research by a team from Germany and the University of the Western Cape Dental School. The findings were then passed by the ethics department at the university.

Greenwall's endeavours were acknowledged by a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list in 2017, and, in 2023, she was honoured with the BDA ( British Dental Association ) John Tomes Medal for her outstanding service to the dental profession.

Dr Linda Greenwall receiving her British Empire Medal (Photo: Linda Greenwall)

As for the future, the couple are already planning dental outreach in Johannesburg with a new programme called Keep Joburg Smiling, as well as in Kenya. Greenwall enthuses: "We are gathering up, starting it up and expanding. "

If you want to find out more about the Dental Wellness Trust, please contact Dr Linda Greenwall at: Charity@dentalwellnesstrust.org