Dental experts behind Brushlink welcome sugar reduction in children’s cereal

While the move has been made in response to consumer pressure around childhood obesity, there will be a knock-on benefit to the health of children’s teeth – which combined with a more widespread use of effective brushing techniques could result in a reduction in the number of children admitted to hospital for treatment for oral disease and tooth decay.

Dev Patel is founder and CEO of Brushlink. He said, “In 2014-15 some 40,970 surgical procedures were carried out on children for their teeth at a cost of £35 million, all to address a health problem which is entirely preventable. Figures released by NHS Digital showed that in the year to this March twice as many children under 10 were admitted to hospital for tooth decay as those treated for broken arms.

“Tooth decay and gum disease are almost entirely preventable by following a diet low in sugar and paying attention to good brushing technique. We know that it’s hard to get children to brush their teeth properly – in a recent survey carried out by us we found that half of the UK’s children tell their parents fibs about brushing their teeth, with barely a third of parents supervising their children’s brushing twice a day. But innovations such as Brushlink are great ways to encourage the whole family towards effective brushing, which is the bedrock of maintaining good oral health.