The National Health Service has launched a national campaign for dental hygiene aimed at restoring healthy dental arches and teeth in the country, as well as reducing the burden on dentists in the National Health Service. The program will be implemented in nurseries and schools to encourage children to clean their teeth with fluoride toothpaste, as data shows that six out of ten children in certain regions suffer from tooth decay by the age of five.
According to a publication in the British Journal of Stomatology, dental hygiene programs under observation are already available to 143,000 children across the country. The British Society of Stomatologists-Pediatric Dentists expressed that healthy dental arches in children should significantly improve over the next two to five years.
The Ministry of Health and Social Care announced that it expects the participation of up to 600,000 children in the new program. Health Minister Steven Kinnock noted: "It is alarming that a third of children aged five in the most deprived areas suffer from tooth decay, which, as is known, can seriously affect their health throughout their lives."
Alongside the program, 23 million toothbrushes and tubes of toothpaste will be provided free of charge each year. "Data exists that access to dental hygiene products in the shortest time after their birth represents them the best start in dental care in life," said the Health and Social Care Administration.
