As populations age around the world, maintaining oral health and oral function has become increasingly important for healthy ageing. Functions such as chewing, swallowing, and speaking are essential for nutrition, communication, social interaction, and overall well-being. Yet these abilities decline with age, particularly among older adults living with frailty or chronic health conditions.
Since its launch in 2015, the FDI’s Oral Health for an Ageing Population (OHAP) project has worked to strengthen the role of dentists and dental teams in supporting healthy longevity. Over the past decade, OHAP has developed a comprehensive list of practical, evidence-based resources tailored to a wide range of audiences, including dentists, dental teams, older adults, caregivers, community workers, and policymakers.

Explore resources to support healthy ageing through oral care

Among its most recent productions are the Frailty Guide and the Exercise Brochure, both launched in 2023. The Frailty Guide is an interactive web application developed for dentists and dental teams caring for adults aged 65 and older. Using a simple two-step assessment, it helps clinicians identify a patient’s dependency level and risk of oral frailty, and then provides tailored preventive recommendations to support individualized, person-centred care. It can be used during consultations and is accessible on desktop, tablet, and smartphone. 

Complementing this clinical tool, the Exercise Brochure provides a series of simple oral exercises that older adults can perform regularly to help maintain oral function and prevent decline. These exercises support key functions such as chewing, swallowing, speaking, making the brochure a valuable resource for both patients and caregivers. 

These resources build on a strong foundation established by earlier OHAP materials. In 2019, FDI published the Managing Older Adults: Chairside Guide, which helps dental professionals adapt care according to an older adult’s level of dependency. That same year, FDI also released patient and caregiver brochures, including Oral Health in Older Adults and Oral Health: Caring for Older Adults, offering practical guidance for daily oral care. Earlier resources, such as the Roadmap for Healthy Ageing (2018), called for integrating oral health into broader healthy ageing strategies. 

Together, these resources reflect OHAP’s life-course, prevention-based approach to oral healthcare. They equip dentists and dental teams with the tools needed to identify risks early, maintain oral function, and support older adults in preserving their health, independence, and quality of life.

OHAP continues to advance the integration of oral health into healthy ageing, universal health coverage, and long-term care systems worldwide.

The FDI Oral Health for an Ageing Population project is support by GC International.