Please join us for an evening to celebrate YOU! 💕💕💕
Fruit & chocolate fondue will be served as well as giveaways and a basket drawing. The color theme for the meeting is pink and red for friendship.
Free for members & $25 for non-members.
**Community Outreach will be accepting dental hygiene donations for Project Radiance. The organization will distribute the items to underprivileged teens in Houston and educate them on the importance of hygiene.**
Register for the event on CEZoom here.
View the event on Facebook here.
Date: Tuesday, February 4
Location: 3303 Main St., Houston, TX 77002
Time: 6:30PM-7:00PM: Social hour
7:00PM-7:30PM: Business meeting
7:30PM-9:00PM: CE
Topic: Betel Nut Consumption – Key Information for the Dental Hygienist
Speaker: Dr. Alan Meyers
Overview
Description: Over 500 million people worldwide consume habit-forming areca (betel) nut products, making them the fourth most commonly abused substance behind caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol. Chewing (mastication) the areca nut releases powerful psychosomatic chemicals that have stimulant and euphoretic properties similar to nicotine. However, consumption is also associated with a plethora of side effects, including diabetes, respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease, peptic ulceration, hepatic cancer, periodontitis, precancerous lesions of the mouth (e.g.leukoplakia), and various oral malignancies. Although traditionally a habit of the Orient, newer evidence is showing a spike in usage among migrant communities in industrialized countries such as the United States – typically within major metropolitan areas. Thus, it is crucial for the dental hygienist to learn more about this addictive habit and consequent adverse oral health effects.
Objectives
1. Identify the common components of betel nut products.
2. Understand the reasons why individuals chew oral betel nut preparations.
3. Recognize the prevalence of betel nut consumption in the US and abroad.
4. Explain the adverse systemic and oral health effects that result from chewing betel nutpreparations.
