Soft drinks and fruit juices still main source of sugar for children
Children in Britain are still getting the majority of their sugar through soft drinks and fruit juices say national statistics, as the rate of tooth decay in five-year-olds rises to a third.
A new report published by Public Health England (PHE) has revealed that for children aged between four and 18, 30% of their sugar intake is coming from sugary drinks, something the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) has issued a warning over concerning dental health.
In recent months, many of the nation’s leading oral health organisations have been campaigning for the government to implement a tax on sugary drinks, given their role in one of the biggest problems facing the nation’s health at the moment, tooth decay in young children.
Last year, 26,000 children aged five to nine were admitted to hospital in England with rotten teeth, up 14% from the previous year. It is believed that the high consumption of sugary drinks is one of the main reasons as to why this is such a persistent problem.
Recently, Tesco removed high sugar drinks such as Ribena and Capri Sun from its shelves, in order to help customers make healthier choices, according to a spokesman. He added that from September onwards, all children’s juice drinks sold at Tesco will have no added sugar in them, ‘because we know it’ll make a positive difference to children’s health’. The BDHF added that this showed that even if the government were not prepared to do anything with regards to sugar children’s drinks, Tesco, and hopefully other stores, are willing to take matters into their own hands.
As well as soft drinks and fruit juices, experts are drawing attention to energy drinks, another high sugar drink that has been the cause of dental concerns for a while now. Jane Cremer, a partner at Doncaster Dental Care, terms them an ‘unmitigated disaster’ for the teeth of young adults and children, and encourages staying away from such drinks and choosing safer drinks like water instead.
