A Happy Mouth is a Happy Mind: World Oral Health Day 2025 sparks global conversation
In 2025, World Oral Health Day (WOHD) continued its journey through the three-year campaign, “A Happy Mouth Is…” This year, the message went deeper — exploring not just smiles, but what lies behind them. With the theme “A happy mouth is a happy mind,” FDI invited the world to reflect on the powerful connection between oral health and mental well-being.
The campaign picked up where it left off in 2024, when Toothie — FDI’s lovable beaver mascot — made its movie debut. The 2025 sequel brought back the familiar character with a fresh twist: an original song that brought the campaign to life, getting everyone singing “a happy mouth is a happy mind” and making the message even more memorable.
Building a Digital Dialogue
As the campaign’s creative elements rolled out across platforms, one thing became clear: digital spaces remain key to sparking global conversations. From September 2024 to April 2025, over 110,000 downloads of campaign materials were recorded — including toolkits, posters, videos, and social media assets. That’s nearly double the previous year’s total, highlighting how the theme found renewed relevance and reach.
Instagram emerged as a central stage for this dialogue. WOHD content across FDI’s accounts alone generated more than 40 million views. Meanwhile, the official Toothie account saw a steady rise in engagement, achieving:
- Over 105,000 profile visits
- 56,294 interactions
- A growing base of 3,200+ followers
For a campaign anchored in storytelling, these numbers represent more than just visibility — they signal meaningful connection.
Influence in Action
This year, FDI partnered with eight influencers to amplify the campaign. Their content helped reach 2.6 million accounts — an 85% increase in reach — and sparked an average of 134.5 engagements per post.
But it wasn’t just influencers making an impact — FDI’s member associations played a vital role in spreading the message globally. By the end of April, more than 575 activities had been reported on the WOHD map, spanning over 100 countries. These included everything from school-based initiatives to government-supported events, reflecting strong global engagement at all levels.
Stakeholder Involvement
The campaign once again received strong support from the World Health Organization. WHO regional offices and country teams actively participated, and WHO Director-General Dr Tedros released a dedicated message on the day.
Beyond institutional partners, the broader healthcare community played an essential role in amplifying the campaign’s impact.
FDI’s corporate partners contributed significantly through global initiatives and platforms:
In partnership with the Chinese Stomatological Assocation, Solventum helped organize a Smile Around the World event in Zhejiang Province, China, drawing over 500 attendees and reaching 450,000+ viewers. Since 2018, this collaboration has empowered nearly 10,000 children with oral hygiene education.
Haleon supported a vast array of global initiatives — from setting a Guinness World Record for dental screenings in India, to launching mobile dental vans, digital assessments, and educational campaigns across Africa, the Middle East, Australia, the U.S., and Europe. Their work reached millions and highlighted the theme, “A Happy Mouth is a Happy Mind,” through mindfulness-focused webinars and storytelling campaigns.
Smile Train ran a focused digital campaign from March 10–24, generating 20.8 million impressions and nearly 9,000 engagements across social platforms. Their top-performing posts on Instagram and Facebook helped bring WOHD to a broader online audience.
Looking Ahead
As FDI prepares to launch the final chapter of the campaign in 2026 — the foundation has been firmly laid. The world is listening, engaging, and responding. And Toothie’s journey is far from over.
Stay tuned for the announcement of the WOHD 2025 Awards winners, and if you’re attending the FDI World Dental Congress in Shanghai in September, don’t miss the exciting launch of the 2026 campaign.