Aims and Objectives: Improving maternal knowledge plays a major role in developing good oral health habits and in preventing diseases like early childhood caries in their children. The present study is aimed to provide pregnant women with the anticipatory guidance and to evaluate its effect on promoting the knowledge and attitude of pregnant mothers regarding infant and toddler's oral health care. Material and Method:In this interventional study, 600 pregnant women attending government hospital, Madurai, were divided into direct intervention, indirect intervention, and control groups. A self-reported questionnaire was completed before intervention. The anticipatory guidance was presented to the direct intervention group by PowerPoint and to the indirect group by pamphlets. Immediately after the intervention, the questionnaire was completed by intervention groups and two months later by all participants. Chi-square test was used for statistical analysis at a significance level of 0.05. Results:The change of scores in the knowledge and attitude of pregnant women had a significant difference in all the three groups. At the end of the study, a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) was noted in the knowledge between the intervention and the control groups. The change in the attitude was not statistically significant. Conclusion:Anticipatory guidance led to change in the score of knowledge about infant and toddler's oral health in intervention groups compared to control group. The direct presentation had superiority over indirect presentation in increasing knowledge about their oral health care. Dentists should do their utmost to educate parents especially the pregnant mothers on children's oral health in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner, as oral health literacy is, ultimately, a pathway to health equity.

The search for bodily beauty is as old as time and so is the concept of esthetics. [1] The thirst for bodily beauty has been existing in man from time immemorial. Although man has tried innumerable ways to adorn and beautify himself, this thirst seems unquenchable. Piercings, tattoos, body paintings, haircuts, and intentional scarring or scarifications are some of the various ways man has been trying to beautify and make himself unique. [2,3] Every culture has its own perception of beauty and teeth are considered as a focal point in the determination of wealth and fashion across many cultures. [2] Dental alterations remain the most frequent of all body modifications. [1] Healthy teeth represent youth, beauty, strength, and health. Dental modification is an ancient practice that has existed throughout history and is still practiced today in many parts of the world. Dental modifications are a valuable contribution to the identification of individuals with respect to geography, ethnicity, and culture. [4] They give us clues about the socioeconomic status of the population, their sociocultural status, migratory routes and cultural interactions. [1,5,6] Today, it exists in various other forms such as tooth diamonds, gold crowns, dental grills, tooth tattoos, tooth rings, tooth piercings, oral and perioral piercings. This review embarks on a journey from the past to the present, to understand the evolution of dental jewelry and the possible underlying reasons for its persistent presence in the society.