Post Author
Sydney Mason
Communications Intern
Oral health issues like infection, inflammation, and untreated cavities can have short and long-term impacts on children’s health and well-being, such as nutrition, speech development, and even overall growth. Despite these potential consequences, many children and families don’t use preventative care, due to cost, anxiety, or stigma.
It’s estimated that around 1 in 5 North Carolina kindergartners have untreated tooth decay and that a similar percentage haven’t accessed preventative oral health dental care in the past year. These are concerning figures that highlight the state of children’s oral health in North Carolina.
NC Child has dedicated time and research to this subject, including the Teeth Talk report published in 2025. After conducting focus groups with parents, providers, and health professionals across the state, the report identified key issues that were impacting children’s oral health. Discussions tended toward issues like a lack of access to providers, provider shortages, insurance and cost barriers to dental care, and knowledge gaps among communities regarding oral health.
It’s clear from the report that broader statewide action is needed to strengthen pediatric oral health care access and delivery, as well as addressing the stigmas around oral health care.
A variety of organizations are taking on the task of working on these issues, from NC Child’s advocacy for changes to strengthen access and affordability of care, to providers across the state are using community and family-centered approaches to care are making a difference in the regions they serve.
One such example is Gladwell Orthodontics, a Raleigh-based orthodontic practice who believes that “Every child deserves an opportunity, support, and someone in their corner advocating for them.” In early 2026, NC Child had the honor of being selected for Gladwell Orthodontics’ Charity Cafe, an effort by the practice to give back to their community by donating cafe proceeds to local non-profits.
Community engagement has always been a part of the ethos of Gladwell Orthodontics. To them, it’s a way to give back to the communities that have helped their practice thrive. “That’s something we feel strongly about as a team, and it’s reflected in the organizations we choose to partner with,” said Gladwell Orthodontics founder Dr. Jason Gladwell.
But the key to the Charity Cafe as Dr. Gladwell sees it is to “give generously, while also inviting our patients to be part of that generosity and impact the community alongside us.” By bringing their patients into the mix, it makes the cafe larger than just the practice, turning it into a community-led effort to support the non-profits of the region.
For Gladwell, NC Child was a natural choice for this quarter’s charity cafe, because of our focus area of child health and well-being, more specifically, children’s oral health. That’s why Gladwell prioritizes a welcoming environment that builds trust with children and parents, so that they are more likely to return for oral health care and their long-term health can be protected.
“Gladwell Orthodontics’ commitment to the well-being of their patients and their broader community is inspiring,” said NC Child Senior Director of Development and Operations Brad Beauregard. “We’re grateful to partner with an organization that is dedicated to strengthening the oral and orthodontic health of the children they serve.”
We are grateful to be partnering with an organization that does so much to protect the oral health and well-being of North Carolina’s children!