Over 300,000 young Nigerians gathered at the Teslim Balogun stadium in Lagos, as well as other locations around the state, to participate in the World Record breaking Teeth brushing challenge. The challenge sponsored by leading oral care brand, Close Up toothpaste, in partnership with Lagos State government, Nigerian Dental Association (NDA), HEIT Solutions, Vas2Net & Core Media, saw various school students take part in brushing their teeth at the same time at different locations.
Speaking
before the kick-off, Executive Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Raji
Fashola, said that the challenge was a representation of how people ought to
take care of their bodies, with oral care being a priority.
“The Lagos
State government supports a comprehensive healthcare system. A simple oral
hygiene routine, such as brushing twice daily, restricts the number of visits
to the dentist. Unfortunately, many people do not take care of their teeth and
mouth because they consider them small among the body parts that should be
taken care of. There is little consideration that this part of the body is
where all the food that we eat in order to nourish the rest of our body passes
through,” Fashola said.
Mr. Mabo Thabe, Managing Director, Unilever
Nigeria, makers of Close Up toothpaste and other household brands, who spoke at
the event, said that Close Up was supporting the challenge as part of its
commitment to promoting and reiterating a healthy oral care culture for
Nigerians.
According to
him, “At Unilever, our mission is to meet the everyday needs of our consumers
through great brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of
life. We have constantly provided quality goods for 90 years in Nigeria, and we
are poised to create even more value for our consumers by staying close to
them, understanding their needs and meeting those needs through consistent
innovation. A healthy and good looking Nigeria is a great Nigeria.”
Project Lead, World breaking Teeth brushing
challenge, and Founder, HEIT Solutions, Dr. Lawal Bakare, who also spoke at the
event said that the Teeth brushing challenge was spread across communities in
Lagos which include Epe, Ikorodu, Agbara, Ikeja and Surulere, with hundreds of
volunteers from the Nigerian Dental Association (NDA), Schools, and other
agencies, who were present at the different locations across the state to
ensure that the counting was properly monitored.
In
preparation for the Challenge, over 300 secondary school teachers went through
a special Teacher’s Alignment Training Session. The teachers were informed of
the World Record standards for counting the number of students brushing in each
school, the designed model for the tooth brushing as well as the waste
recycling element to the attempt.
Close Up
Brand Manager, Mr. Dexter Adeola, thanked Nigerians for their unflinching
support towards making the event a huge success. “At the beginning, we urged
Nigerians to show their support for this challenge by brushing twice. I have
been overwhelmed by the turn out and the number of people who told me that they
brushed twice today already and will still do so later. This is one of the
reasons Close Up loves Naija. The warmth and love of the people cannot be
quantified. Thank you Nigeria! Today, together we have made history!” he
concluded.
The Close Up
Teeth brushing challenge would be the latest World Record on Teeth brushing,
putting Nigeria in the Guinness Book of World Records. India previously held
the title where an event brought together 177,003 people to brush their teeth
at the same time.
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