Poor oral health is no laughing matter: Why your child’s oral health is so important

As a parent or carer, you might be thinking about how your child's oral heath can impact their overall health and wellbeing. Problems with your child’s teeth can make it more difficult for them to eat, smile and socialise. It can also lead to pain and infection, resulting in missed days from school and days off work for you.  

What does poor oral health look like? 

We learn from Dr Natalie that the most common oral disease in children and young people is tooth decay, which happens when bacteria create a sticky layer called plaque over your teeth. This damages the surface of your teeth over time¹ and can lead to enamel decay or dentinal decay. Enamel decay is early-stage decay while dentinal decay is late-stage decay that’s obviously seen.  

It’s also important to know that if your child has high levels of disease in their baby teeth, they’ll also have a greater risk of disease in their permanent teeth.² 

Why does poor oral health matter? 

“You might be surprised to learn that tooth extractions are the most common reason for hospital admissions in children aged 6 to 10 – and that the rates of dentinal decay are almost 3 times higher among children and young people living in the poorest communities as among those living in the richest areas,” she says. 

“What’s worrying is that the rates of late-stage tooth decay in five-year-olds haven’t declined since 2015 – previously, they had been reducing since 2008,” she says. 

“It’s also concerning to see that children from some minority ethnic groups experience significantly higher levels of late-stage tooth decay compared with the rest of the population,” Natalie says.  

What we’re doing to help 

Our Virtual Family Space has been running an online oral health workshop called Healthy Smiles in Plymouth, Cumbria, and Surrey Heath. 

The Healthy Smiles workshop, written in partnership with the University of Plymouth’s Peninsula Dental School, helps explain the importance of good oral hygiene, the impact of a healthy diet on teeth, and more.  

What can you do to support your child’s oral health? 

From the age of 7, children should be able to brush their teeth themselves, but they might still need a bit of encouragement and guidance from an adult.  

These simple steps will help your child’s teeth stay healthy: 

• Avoid sugary foods and drinks between meals and within one hour of bedtime 

• Use a fluoride toothpaste containing 1450ppm of fluoride (look for this on the ingredients of the packaging) 

• Use a pea size amount of toothpaste 

• Brush for about two minutes with a small, medium textured brush or an electric toothbrush 

• Brush before bed and at one other time during the day 

• Wait at least 30 minutes after eating before brushing teeth 

• Spit the toothpaste out but don’t rinse after brushing 

• Try to visit the dentist regularly 

There are also ways to make toothbrushing time more fun, like apps, singing toothbrushes, brushing songs and TV shows.  

Some apps to check out include: 

• Brush DJ 

• Chomper Chums (Android / Apple) 

• Pokemon Smile 

Finding a dentist 

We know NHS dentistry waiting times are long in some regions, so it's best to find a local dentist for your child and register with the practice as soon as you can. 

You can find NHS dentists by entering your post code and checking for dental practices near you: 

• England (Or you can call NHS England's Customer Contact Centre on 0300 311 2233. This number takes you to general enquiries, who can help)  

• Scotland  

• Wales  

• Northern Ireland  

Dental surgeries don’t always have the capacity to take on new NHS patients, so you might have to join a waiting list or look for a different dentist who is taking on new NHS patients. 

Footnotes

1. Tooth decay - NHS, https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/tooth-decay/

2. Health matters: child dental health - GOV.UK, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-matters-child-dental-health/health-matters-child-dental-health