MORE than 150 children a day get rotten teeth at a hospital in England, grim figures show.
Tooth extractions for children aged up to 19 have increased by almost a fifth in a year, according to the Office for Health Improvement and Inequalities (OHID).
Figures for the financial year ending 2025 showed there were 56,143 tooth extractions in NHS hospitals for this age group.
This is a 14 percent increase over the previous year.
Tooth extraction due to tooth decay – when bacteria eats away at the surface of your teeth, causing pain, tooth decay and infection – was more common in children aged five to nine, according to figures from the Hospital Event Statistics (HES).
And it was the most common reason for hospital admission for children this age.
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The rate of exports to children has been steadily increasing since 2021, OHHD said.
It comes as the UK is in the middle of an NHS dental care crisis, with some Britons being forced to pull teeth with pliers or travel abroad to see a dentist because of a lack of slots in the UK.
A former miner lived on painkillers and soup while he spent seven months unsuccessfully trying to get an NHS appointment to have his broken crowns fixed.
Figures published last year showed that only 40 per cent of adults in England have had a dental check-up in the last two years.
NHS data experts suggested the rising number of tooth extractions in children reflected a recovery in NHS work after the pandemic – but the British Dental Association (BDA) said more needed to be done to improve access to care.
BDA chairman Eddie Crouch said: “These appalling statistics are a disgrace to governments past and present.
“Tooth decay cannot be undisputed as the number one reason children are admitted to hospital.
“Targeted prevention programs are now in place, but there is still little sign that the government is willing to rebuild access to care.
“Dentists can’t fix these problems in the first place if we don’t catch them.”
Figures released by OHID today showed there were 33,976 tooth extractions in people aged up to 19, where tooth decay was the main cause.
This represents an 11 percent increase over the previous year.
Just over sixty percent of all extractions in this age group were due to decayed teeth.
But for children aged up to four, this rose to 80%.
Meanwhile, 86.5 percent of children aged five to nine had lost teeth due to tooth decay.
There were also regional differences in tooth extraction operations.
Yorkshire and the Humber recorded the highest rates of discharges due to sepsis – 504 for every 100,000 children aged up to 19.
Meanwhile, the lowest rates were in the East Midlands, where there were 73 removals per 100,000 children.
Children and young people living in the most deprived communities were more than three times more likely to have a tooth extracted due to tooth decay than those in more affluent areas, the data showed.
Tooth decay is common in children and can occur when bacteria form a sticky layer called plaque on top of teeth, destroying them over time.
It’s more likely to happen when kids eat sugary treats and don’t brush their teeth and gums regularly.
The British Society of Pediatric Dentistry (BSPD) said the NHS data is likely to represent the continued recovery of general anesthesia services after the pandemic and does not include community dental services.
Dr Oosh Devalia, president of the BSPD, said: “The BSPD urges policymakers to maintain a firm focus on the priorities we know will help turn children’s oral health around – such as supervised tooth brushing, community water fluoridation and early access to dental teams.”
He also said there was a “need to reduce under-16 sugar consumption and, crucially, to push for every child to have a ‘dental home’, with access to a dental check-up by their first birthday”.
Dr Charlotte Eckhardt, Dean of the School of Dental Surgery (FDS) at the Royal College of Surgeons England (RCS England), said: “No child should be hospitalized for an illness that is almost entirely preventable.
“Tooth decay causes unnecessary pain, missed school days and avoidable hospital admissions at a higher rate in 2025 than last year.
“If the Government is to meet its target of transforming the NHS dental system by 2035, it must ensure that every child can see a dentist when they need it.
“Zip code should never dictate a child’s health.”
Tooth brushing tips for kids
WHEN it comes to children brushing their teeth, it is important to use a fluoride toothpaste as this helps prevent and control tooth decay.
According to the NHS, children up to the age of three should:
- Start brushing your baby’s teeth as soon as the first milk tooth erupts (usually around six months, but it can be earlier or later).
- Parents or caregivers should brush the teeth.
- Brush teeth twice a day for about two minutes with fluoride toothpaste.
- Brush the last thing at night before bed and on another occasion.
- Use children’s fluoride toothpaste that contains no less than 1,000 ppm fluoride (check label) unless a dentist advises family toothpaste that contains between 1,350 ppm and 1,500 ppm fluoride.
- Use only one dab of toothpaste.
- Make sure children do not eat or lick toothpaste from the tube.
Children aged three to six years must:
- Brush at least twice a day for about two minutes with fluoride toothpaste.
- Brush last thing at night before bed and at least one other time.
- Parents or caregivers should brush the teeth.
- Use children’s fluoride toothpaste that contains no less than 1,000 ppm fluoride (check label) unless a dentist advises family toothpaste that contains between 1,350 ppm and 1,500 ppm fluoride.
- Use only a pea-sized amount of toothpaste.
- Spit after brushing and don’t rinse – if you rinse, the fluoride won’t work as well.
Children seven years and older you should:
- Brush at least twice a day for about two minutes with fluoride toothpaste.
- Brush last thing at night before bed and at least one other time.
- Use fluoride toothpaste that contains between 1,350 ppm and 1,500 ppm fluoride (check the label).
- Spit after brushing and don’t rinse – if you rinse, the fluoride won’t work as well.
Children aged seven and over should be able to brush their teeth, but it’s a good idea to monitor them to make sure they’re brushing properly and for about two minutes.
Source: NHS
