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THE SMILE YOU GET from young people in Moray is very likely to be much brighter than from almost any other part of the UK.

That is according to a report that says the lowest level of tooth decay amongst young people and children is higher in Scotland than any other part of the UK.

The report came at a time when Dentists in England are highlighting that the UK Government has not been doing enough to promote healthy teeth – with England lagging well behind the care and attention available in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Just a few years after action was taken to increase the availability of NHS dental care in the north east, the region is among the highest for ‘no obvious tooth decay’ in Scotland. Moray, in particular, scores well with fewer than 15% of youths in the region suffering from bad teeth.

Councillor Shona Morrison is one of three Council representatives on the Moray Integration Joint Board which manages health and social care services.

She said the statistics are encouraging, adding: “It think it is due to the proactive work taken up by our dental teams in schools – and also through increasing awareness and due care taken to prevent the onset of dental decay through changing diet and improving dental hygiene.”

It is now commonplace in Moray to have protective coating applied to teeth during early years in nurseries and schools, reducing tooth decay.

The report found: “The dental health of P7 children in Grampian is much better than observed in the last inspection held in 2015. There has been an improvement in terms of children with no obvious decay experience from 73% to 79%. This is a fantastic achievement.”