Parents take advantage of free back-to-school dental care

Back-to-school season is in full swing with parents hustling to schedule physicals and screenings before the first day.

Dozens of students saw the dentist for free on Saturday thanks to the Pinellas County Health Department.

Health officials hosted a free dental clinic at the Pinellas Park Center in Largo, offering free teeth cleaning, fillings, extractions, x-rays, and more.

"Tooth pain is not a fun thing to have," explains Dr. Haychell Sarydar. "The purpose of this event is to have children with many cavities, or children with the worst cavities, taken care of before school starts."

Dr. Sarydar mentioned how distracting tooth pain can be in the classroom.

Novia Allen, 3, had her teeth cleaned ahead of her first day of pre-school and her mother, Kiana Barbery says even the pre-school students have lengthy back-to-school shopping lists.

"Things are kind of expensive having kids these days. So anything that they have free or discounted prices is always a go-to for me," said Barbery.

Students left with freshly cleaned, pearly whites and their parents left with helpful tips on how to keep little teeth clean and healthy.