FDI campaign brought together around 220 territories; new series starts in Prague
The three-year World Oral Health Day campaign brought together around 220 territories and more than 1,500 activities, and at the congress in Prague FDI is presenting the successor for the period 2027 to 2029.
FDI closes a three-year cycle and announces a successor
The World Dental Federation is concluding the World Oral Health Day campaign launched at the World Dental Congress in Sydney in 2023. The cycle ran across three themes: in 2024 the link between oral and general health, from periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease to diabetes; in 2025 mental health, that is pain, tooth loss and self-confidence; in 2026 oral health at every stage of life. FDI is presenting the successor for the period 2027 to 2029 at this year's congress in Prague.
The figures for the cycle: around 220 territories took part with more than 1,500 registered activities, along with more than 1.19 million page views and close to 105 million content views between 2024 and 2026. Downloads of campaign materials grew from year to year, from 40,330 in 2024 to 55,000 in 2025 and 79,000 in 2026, an increase of 43 percent in the last year. Hashtag reach climbed to 1.25 billion in 2026, and the engagement rate of 15 percent exceeds the usual 1 to 5 percent for health campaigns of similar scope.
The visual carrier was Toothie, FDI's beaver mascot, with a trilogy of videos and accompanying anthems; his Instagram profile grew by more than 3,600 followers in less than three months during the 2026 campaign, to a total of 6,423. The World Health Organization amplified the campaign every year.
Context
Oral diseases affect close to 3.7 billion people and are among the most widespread noncommunicable diseases, and they remain underfunded in global health budgets. After the WHO Resolution on oral health of 2021 and the Global Action Plan 2023 to 2030, the UN Political Declaration on noncommunicable diseases and mental health of December 2025 formally placed oral diseases on the noncommunicable disease agenda for the first time.
For your practice
- Campaign materials were downloaded 79,000 times during 2026: ready-made visuals for the waiting room and the practice's social media without producing your own.
- The inclusion of oral diseases in the UN noncommunicable disease agenda is an argument that carries weight in conversation with family medicine physicians and local authorities.
- The 2026 theme of oral health across all stages of life maps directly onto recall protocols for older patients.