Tooth decay hits quarter of five- year-olds, survey suggests

More than a quarter of five-year-olds in
England have tooth decay, although the
number is down, a survey suggests.
The analysis by Public Health England looked
at data from 133,000 dental examinations
across the country, covering 21% of five-year-
olds.
It suggested 27% of all five-year-olds had
tooth decay, down from 30% in a 2008 survey.
The British Dental Association (BDA) said there
remained a "deep chasm" between the best
and worst areas.
Deprived areas had the highest numbers
affected by decay.
Figures ranged from 21.2% of five-year-olds in
the south-east to 34.8% in the north-west.
When the researchers looked at more localised
data, Brighton and Hove was found to have the
lowest percentage affected by tooth decay, at
12.5%, compared with the highest figure of
53.2% in Leicester.
Ingrained habits 'danger'
Tooth decay is caused by a build-up of plaque
on the teeth. Bacteria in the plaque feed on
sugars from food and drink, and produce an
acid that slowly destroys teeth.
Decay stems largely from a poor diet, but also
poor dental care - not brushing teeth properly
and not visiting the dentist often enough.
Although healthy adult teeth will come through
in children whose milk teeth have been
affected by decay, if such bad habits become
ingrained, there will also be problems with
those teeth.
A five-year-old normally has 20 milk teeth.
Children with decay had, on average, between
three and four affected teeth.
The analysis found 3% of those with decay had
one or more teeth removed, a painful
procedure often carried out in hospital under
anaesthetic.
There have been improvements - 72% of five-
year-olds have no tooth decay, up from 69%
in 2008.
Public Health England suggests part of this
improvement may be down to increased levels
of fluoride in most children's toothpastes.
'Lowest decay rates'
Prof Kevin Fenton, director of health and well-
being at Public Health England said: "This
latest survey shows the numbers of five-year-
olds free from tooth decay have improved but
there is still much to do, dental decay is
preventable.
"Parents should brush their children's teeth
for at least two minutes twice a day, once just
before bedtime and at least one other time
during the day.
"Also supervise tooth brushing until your child
is seven or eight years old, either by brushing
their teeth yourself or, if they brush their own
teeth, by watching how they do it."
From April this year, local authorities have
taken over responsibility for oral health.
Health Minister Lord Howe, said: "We know
more work is needed to make sure good oral
health is more consistent right across the
country.
"However, we have some of the lowest decay
rates in the world."
Dr Christopher Allen, chairman of the BDA's
public health committee, said: "This report
highlights a welcome improvement to the
overall oral health of five-year-old children
across England, but it also reminds us of the
deep chasm that exists between those with the
best and worst oral health.
"That divide is based not just on geography,
but also on deprivation."
The BDA's scientific adviser, Prof Damien
Walmsley said: "There remain pockets of
inequality. It's really about targeting resources
so we can get to those people."
He said trying to instil healthy eating habits as
early as possible was key, as was ensuring
parents regularly took their children to the
dentist.