Strong Criticism Of N.Z.’s Dental Hygiene And Diet

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30157, 14 June 1963, Page 13

Strong Criticism Of N.Z.’s Dental Hygiene And Diet

Ihe diet and dental hygiene of New Zealanders were strongly criticised by Mrs J. Spain, Inspector of Dental Nursing Services for Timaru, at a public meeting organised by the Ashburton branch of the Women in Ashburton last evening.

‘I am simply appalled at the tilth of teeth, especially of those who have just finished receiving free dental service,” she said. ‘People are literally unconscious of their teeth except when they are eating.” „ diet. Mrs Spain said that New Zealanders were being “brainwashed” into buying luxury products.

"A good 50 per cent, of parents send their children to school in a state of starvation,” she said. Children ■were not being given anything which was nourishing. Cereals and packaged foods were the national food for breakfast, but these were dehydrated and over processed. and had not a bit of food value in them. Pavlova Cake National Dish "Fifty per cent, of our children have either pies, fish and chips, or jam sandwiches for lunch and have too much pocket money," she said. "Our national dish has become Pavlova cake and housewives pride themselves on having numerous recipes for making cakes and biscuits.

"Children eat a lot of rubbish instead of having a proper diet. We eat seven meals a day, but it is the wrong type of food." Mrs Spain suggested that New Zealanders should have only three meals a day of the proper diet, and clean their teeth after each meal. "However,” she said, “I conclude that it is impossible to change our eating habits.” If her suggestions were taken, tooth decay would be cut down by between 40 and 50 per cent. Dentists and Dental Nurses The number of persons over the age of 21 wearing dentures of some sort in New Zealand was 72 per cent., said Mrs Spain. Figures taken from the Army showed that men between 17 and 23 years of age had an average of 22 teeth each, either filled, missing or decayed. “So you can see that the few dental nurses and dentists cannot cope with the work which has to be done.” she •aid. Although there were many dentists and dental nurses graduating each year, many were going overseas or into administrative positions, and. while the number of dental nurses could just be maintained. the number of dentists would be difficult to keep up. Fluoridation If a fluoride system was installed into the Ashburton water supply, it would cost £2600 initially, and between 6d and Is a head a year to run. said Mrs Spain. The fluoride content in Ashburton’s water supply was .13 parts in a million, when it should be between .9 •nd 1.1, she said. If it was installed in the water supply, it would cut down dental decay by 50 to 65 per cent. It was necessary from a general health standard, because the addition of

fluoride in water was nutritional, not medicinal.

Also, it was practically impossible to overdose when putting fluoride in water supplies. said Mrs Spain. The amount was placed in the supply by engineers, who would control the supply rigidly. “The body does not start to store fluoride until it is up to four parts of the water, and to become toxic the amount has to be eight parts." she said. It took 10 to 20 years before paralysis set in. In the United States, the number of water supplies which had fluoride added

had grown from three in 1945 to 1236 in 1962, she said. In introducing the speakers the president of the branch 'Mrs Raymond Oakley) said there had been a lot of publicity in newspapers concerning fluoridation, "but many persons had shown a great lack of interest. Dr. W. I. Glass. Medical Officer of Health in Timaru, spoke in favour of fluoridation. “We are interested in the preventive side of medicine. We exist solely to avoid sickness by preventing it.” Dentist’s Views Mr K. L. Anderson, a dentist in Ashburton, said that whatever improvement there had been in children’s teeth had not been achieved through dental detail, but because they received regular treatment. “This is thanks to the dental nurses, dentists, and the adolescent scheme, not to the parents.” he said. “I am disgusted to find boards allowing tuckshops in schools,” he said. Children were always buying sweets, he added. Fluoridation was not the complete answer, said Mr Anderson. The peopfe had to be interested in eating correctly.