Traditional beliefs and behaviors of mothers and teachers related to oral health of children in rural districst of Qazvin: A qualitative study Dr. Pishva N.,1 Dr. Asefzadeh S.,2 Pishva MH.,3 Majedi Z.3 1 Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences. Qazvin, Iran. 2 Professor, Department of Health Services Administration & Community Health, Qazvin University of Medical Science. Qazvin, Iran. 3 Social Science Bachelor. (Received 2 March, 2008 Accepted 5 Nov, 2008) Abstract Background & Aim: Traditional Beliefs as part of people's culture can influence the general wellbeing of communities. In order to promote healthy behaviors, it is important to be aware of people’s traditional background. This study was performed to identify beliefs, traditions and practices of mothers and teachers related to oral and dental health of children in the rural Qazvin areas. Materials & Methods: A qualitative study (ethnographic) was conducted in three villages of Qazvin province. Data was collected through interviews, observations, and focus group discussions. Data was coded and classified according to main study findings. Results: Information was classified into 6 categories: tooth eruption and exfoliation, diet and oral health, oral hygiene, dental caries, oral and gum diseases as well as dental trauma. Beliefs such as consuming a great amount of milk can be useful while others like putting un-cooked meat on top of tooth for relief of toothache can be harmful. Beliefs like rubbing onion on the gum during tooth eruption may have unknown or less important outcomes. Conclusion: The identified beliefs, traditions and practices were classified as useful, harmful & unknown effects. It was suggested to organize appropriate training classes for mothers and teachers in order to update their knowledge and improve their behavior regarding the proper oral health care of children based on the findings of this study. Key words: Beliefs - Tradition - Behavior - Culture - Oral Health. Corresponding Author: Dr. Pishva N., Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences. Qazvin, Iran. e.mail: ne_pishva@yahoo.com |
