Protecting Children’s Teeth as Oral Health Declines in London
2025 reports into children’s dentistry and oral health have highlighted a cavity crisis in the UK, with an astounding number of children showing signs of severe tooth decay.
What the research shows:
Researchers at Queen Mary University London analysed 600,000 anonymous GP and hospital records of children aged between 5 and 16 over 5 years. The results showed that 1 in 200 children in the North East area of London have had to have one tooth removed under general anaesthetic, with many more undergoing multiple tooth extractions.
What’s worrying:
Worse, the majority of the cases were found to be largely preventable. Children had developed advanced tooth decay due to parents skipping regular dental visits, due to declining NHS services.
From 2022 to 2023, 47,581 children required tooth extractions in hospitals in the UK due to dental decay, which averages at 120 operations a day across the country, showing that London is not alone in this crisis.
Despite advanced, preventative technology available to dentists, tooth decay remains the leading cause of hospital admissions in young children, when there’s no reason that this should still be the case.
Failed Government promises
The Government has pledged efforts to address this crisis on more than one occasion, and even the BDA is crying out for more to be done. With Labour pledging to create 100,000 additional child dental appointments and roll out supervised tooth brushing in breakfast clubs, there’s not enough movement to address the nation’s poor dental health and social dental inequalities.
Research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, based on House of Commons Library data, shows that 5.35 million children in England alone have not seen an NHS dentist in over a year as of March 2024. Thus, the crisis is far from over.
Dentists can’t do anything more to help
You might ask why dentists aren’t doing more to help the situation. Dentists like us can’t. With dental practices in London to maintain, it’s impossible financially to offer NHS dental services—and with waiting lists so full, it would take decades of daily, dedicated NHS dentistry to improve the situation.
Thousands of NHS dentists are either leaving their practice entirely or moving to private dentistry, and it’s not without reason.
Underfunding, low reimbursement rates, rising operation costs and job dissatisfaction have led to a crumbling system.
So what can parents do?
Parents have no choice but to seek private dentistry if they cannot get their children to be seen by an NHS dentist. While we sympathise that this is not a favourable solution for households already stretched to their limits, it’s the only solution available.
Children need to visit the dentist at least once a year, and skipping appointments can result in more significant issues developing because young teeth can decay faster and need a little more help.
The face of private dentistry has changed – patients now have the option to explore affordable payment plans and 0% dental finance for treatments costing upwards of £250. Plus, by visiting the dentist regularly, you can keep costs low because your child’s oral health will be at a good standard.
Children’s dentist near me
If you’re looking for a fuss-free and affordable paediatric dentist in London, Mint Dental Clinic in Elephant & Castle offers check-ups from just £50, which includes two x-rays (so there are no additional charges or surprises when you get here). Explore our services.
