New research shows half of children from deprived areas of Scotland go to school with decay
New research has highlighted the difference in standards of oral health between children living in affluent and deprived areas in Scotland.
According to recent statistics, 68 per cent of children in Scotland have no symptoms of decay when they begin primary school; however, this falls to just over 50 per cent in deprived areas.
Professor Richard Watt, a public health dentist from University College London, said that it is clear that there is still a significant gap between wealthy and poor families living in Scotland. In the most affluent areas, fewer than 1 in 5 children suffers from tooth decay at the age of 5 years old, but this increases to almost1 in 2 in deprived areas. While this research flags up warnings related to oral health, it is typical of health trends across Scotland, with inequalities also visible in rates of obesity and diabetes and significant variations in life expectancy.
Since 2000, standards of oral health in Scotland have improved considerably, mainly thanks to greater investment in services and the introduction of the Childsmile programme; however, there is still a way to go. Lorna Macpherson, professor of dental public health at the University of Glasgow Dental School, believes that targeting deprived areas with measures such as improved education, food cooperative programmes and encouragement to make use of free NHS dental services, will help to reduce rates of decay in the future.
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