Tooth decay four times higher in deprived areas of Sheffield

Children in some deprived areas of the city have four times more tooth decay than youngsters in other parts. A Sheffield Council report into oral and dental health revealed that inequality persists in levels of child tooth decay across the city, with a fourfold difference between areas with the highest and lowest levels, and there is a 'clear link' between deprivation and levels of tooth decay. There are also calls for the local authority to consider water fluoridation - the control addition of fluoride to a public water supply to reduce tooth decay. 

A report to the council's health communities and adult social care scrutiny and policy development committee, said it was 12 years since the council debated water fluoridation and officers are talking to Public Health England about a new review into it.

Councillors looked into oral and dental health in Sheffield last year and made several recommendations. They will meet on Wednesday to discuss responses from NHS England and the director of Public Health. The report by Debbie Hanson, health improvement principal for Public Health at Sheffield Council, said: "Despite all the hard work that goes into oral health promotion, inequality persists in levels of child tooth decay across the city, with a fourfold difference between areas with the highest and lowest levels.

"There is also a clear link between deprivation and levels of child tooth decay. "The report presented to the committee clearly indicated the importance of increasing children's exposure to fluoride in fighting decay, and the effectiveness of water fluoridation in ensuring all children benefit from fluoride."


Never ends! Fluoridation fluoridation.
Always deprived communities. Why not increase their well being by educational, economic and spiritual means not just focus on their children's teeth.