Dental health professionals as tobacco cessation counselors

The purpose of the paper was to review the ever growing threat of tobacco and its ill effects and the role of DHPs (Dental Health Professionals) in curbing this menace. Materials and Methods: Several publications and books were electronically searched in google using the keywords “Role of DHPs in tobacco cessation”, “Strategies to reduce tobacco-related morbidity and mortality”, and “Dental office an ideal setting for tobacco cessation services”. The search was limited to articles and books in the English literature. To prepare a thorough review the contents were screened between the year 1992 to 2015 by going through the title and abstracts, and further short listing articles for full text reading. Conclusion: The present review revealed that DHPs are largely the untapped resource for providing effective tobacco intervention services. DHPs can play a vital role in helping patients quit using tobacco which can be very beneficial and cost effective as well.