More tooth decay in children

Carola Felchner is a freelance writer in the medical department and a certified training and nutrition advisor. She worked for various specialist magazines and online portals before becoming a freelance journalist in 2015. Before starting her internship, she studied translation and interpreting in Kempten and Munich.

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The study "Zahnreport 2020" shows, among other things, the frequency of caries in children and adolescents. Read which groups are particularly affected.

One third of twelve year olds in Germany have tooth decay in their permanent teeth. This is the result of a study by the Barmer health insurance company. The "Zahnreport" reported 240,000 children with caries treatment in 2018 - that is significantly more than previously assumed. "Studies have so far assumed about 19 percent of twelve-year-olds," said Barmer boss Christoph Straub on Thursday. The figures were based on health insurance data from over nine million patients.

Causes unclear

One can only speculate about why so many children have tooth decay, says Michael Walter, Director of the Dresden Polyclinic for Dental Prosthetics, when presenting the results. Changed diet may play a role or that some populations are difficult to reach for dental health. There is a trend towards neglecting mouthguards among disadvantaged families, added Straub.

Problems early on

Among other things, the study determined the proportion of twelve-year-olds without caries treatment. Hamburg brings up the rear in this category: around 60 percent of twelve-year-olds have not yet had caries treatment there. In Saarland it is almost 70 percent.

There is also a polarization: "Few children and adolescents have particularly high levels of tooth decay," says Straub. In the case of adolescents and children under 18 years of age, ten percent account for 70 to 90 percent of the total benefits. The problems can already be located in the first few years - according to the study, more than 15 percent of under-six-year-olds have never been to the dentist.

Baby teeth also affected

According to the report, even younger children already have problems with tooth decay: More than half of ten-year-olds - around 400,000 children - have already had dental caries treatment behind them. This not only causes severe pain in some cases, but also often leads to problems with the permanent teeth, explains Walter.

Most common dental disease worldwide

Tooth decay is the most common dental disease in the world, around one in ten gets tooth decay at least once in their life. Hardly visible at the beginning, gradually chalky white spots or dark discoloration appear. As the tooth decay progresses, the tooth demineralizes and pain can occur. In the late stages, tooth decay can spread to other teeth and inflammatory bacteria can enter the entire body via the bloodstream.

(caf / dpa)

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