There was a program last night on the state of childrens' teeth in this country. It was ghastly to see that children as young as 4 were having most of their baby teeth taken out. There were several reasons, poor diet mainly sweets and sugary drinks being the main culprits, poor dental hygiene and never going to the dentist. [which is free to children IF you can find an NHS dentist]. I've lived abroad for a large part of my life. When I returned the last time with an 8 year old and a 5 year old I was horrified by how many sweets and sugary drinks that English children had. My children used to nag for the type of lunch boxes some of their friends had - mainly chocolate bars and crisps and a sweet drink. I hasten to add not all children had this but a lot did.We have a huge variety of sweets, biscuits etc on offer, sweets are not treated as a weekly treat but a daily treat. Sweet drinks like squash and Ribena are very popular, a lot of children go to bed after cleaning their teeth with a sugary drink. My DIL tells me she has overheard parents with young children feel it is unnecessary for toddlers to clean their teeth. Your baby teeth act as a guide for your adult teeth, imagine not having any teeth for several years and then the new ones coming in crooked.[ Don't get me started on crooked teeth - why do English people not go to an orthodontist - you can go as an adult you know]
Let's encourage our children to care for their childrens teeth and maybe we will lose the reputation we have abroad of a nation of horrible teeth. [actually joked about in the US].
