Dental surgeons urge England's schools to go sugar-free

By ITS Education Asia

A recent call from dental surgeons in England is encouraging all schools to go sugar-free in a bid to combat tooth decay. They say it is essential to cut sugar in school meals to tackle a condition affecting a quarter of five-year-olds.

Dentists also want more supervised teeth-brushing in schools and guidelines on healthy packed lunches. Tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions among five-to-nine-year-olds over the last three years, the report says.

The Faculty of Dental Surgery has 12 recommendations to try to cut down on cases of tooth decay.

These include:

• all schools in England to introduce supervised teeth-brushing schemes, as exist in Scotland and Wales, before 2022
• all schools to become "sugar-free"
• extending the soft-drinks levy to include sugary dairy drinks
• limiting advertising and promotions for high-sugar products
• reducing the sugar content of commercial baby foods

Should Hong Kong schools also consider banning all sugar in schools? What do you think?