Chewing sugar-free gum could save billions

The data is significant given tooth decay and oral diseases rank fourth among the most expensive global health conditions to treat, according to the World Health Organization. While tooth decay is largely preventable, it still affects 60-90 per cent of schoolchildren and nearly all adults globally.

The study, a first of its kind globally, was funded by Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company and independently conducted by the Institute of Empirical Health Economics in Germany (IFEG), with input from an international scientific steering committee comprised of thought-leaders in dental and public health and economics, including Professor Elizabeth Kay of Peninsula Dental School, Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry.

Researchers modelled a potential decrease in dental care costs from tooth decay for 25 industrialised countries including the UK. The study follows a piece of research in 2016, which revealed that the NHS could save up to £8.2m per annum if all twelve-year-olds in the UK were to increase their chewing of sugar-free gum. Conducted by the York Health Economics Consortium and Peninsula Dental School, Plymouth University, with funding from Wrigley, the study was an initial exploration into the potential cost savings that chewing of sugar-free gum could bring.