BDA British Dental Association : An app a day keeps the dentist away

3 January 2017

The British Dental Association (BDA) welcomes a new initiative launched by Public Health England that makes it easier for parents to choose foods which are better for them amid concerns that children are consuming 50% of their daily maximum sugar allowance at breakfast.

The new Change4Life Be Food Smart app has been designed to help families see in an instant how much sugar, saturated fat and salt is contained in the food and drinks they buy.

The BDA is concerned that many foods laden with sugar - including breakfast cereals and bars - are aggressively marketed at children which not only pile on the pounds but raise the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and rotting our children's teeth.

NHS surveys show that one in eight children have tooth decay by three years of age, one in four of five-year-olds and almost half (46%) of eight-year-olds. Tooth decay remains the number one reason why children are admitted to hospital - where decay has reached such extreme levels that rotten teeth need to be extracted under general anaesthetic.

Approximately 46,500 children and young people under 19 were admitted to hospital with tooth decay in 2013-14. The numbers were highest in the five to nine-year-old age group, which showed a 14% increase between 2010-11 and 2013-14. The BDA estimates that overall the cost to the NHS of treating these cases is around £38 million.

The British Dental Association's scientific adviser, Professor Damien Walmsley, said:

'Our excessive consumption of sugary and high fat foods has led to an alarming rise in obesity not just in adults but also in children, as well as type 2 diabetes and tooth decay. This places an enormous strain on the families affected and costs the cash-strapped NHS millions to treat every year.

'We urgently need to eat more sensibly, and where better to start than at the breakfast table. Assessing the nutrient value of foods when you're out shopping can be a trying and time-consuming task, but the new Change4Life Be Food Smart app makes this easy to do, incorporating the traffic light system, and suggesting healthier alternatives.

'For a preventable disease, it's truly shocking that more than 46,000 young people had to be admitted to hospital for severe tooth decay in 2013-14, costing the NHS around £38 million. If the government is serious about preventing more children suffering from poor oral health, it must ensure that industry, retailers and advertisers all take action to curb the nation's addiction to sugar.'

About the BDA

The British Dental Association (BDA) is the professional association and trade union for dentists in the UK. It represents dentists working in general practice, in community and hospital settings, in academia and research, and in the armed forces, and includes dental students. The BDA promotes members' interests, advances the science, arts and ethics of dentistry, and contributes towards improving the nation's oral health.

For further information, please contact the BDA's media team on 0207 563 4145/46 or visit the BDA's news centre. You can also follow news from the BDA on Twitter. Membership packages reflect the varied needs of dentists.