About The Authors

August 2023 - Health

66% of nurses and dentists say health issues facing children have worsened in the past year: The cost of living crisis has led to worsened health issues for many children in the UK, according to a survey involving nurses and dentists. It found that two-thirds (66%) of the school nurses and dentists surveyed reported that the health issues facing children have worsened over the past year, due to parents being unable to afford healthy meals. Tooth decay, anxiety, and stunted growth are among the main problems caused by the rising prices of food in the UK, with over 75% of nurses and dentists reporting seeing decaying and damaged teeth.

The survey was carried out by Saphna and the British Dental Association (BDA) as part of a campaign they are promoting, urging the government to provide free school meals for every primary school pupil in England. Over 300 school nurses and dentists in the UK were questioned as part of the ‘No Child Left Behind’ campaign. The survey revealed that 50% of the respondents had dealt with children suffering due to a lack of healthy food on a daily or weekly basis, with 1 in 6 nurses seeing nutritional health issues daily.

Further findings revealed that many school children have attempted to take away extra school meals to give to their parents at home. In addition, several nurses reported that there were cases of children fainting due to hunger and taken to A&E as a result. Over 75% of the nurses and dentists surveyed said one nutritious meal a day would improve the health of primary school children by a large or very large extent.

Currently, all children in the infant years (reception to year 2) in maintained schools in England are entitled to free school meals. From September 2023, all primary school children in state schools in London will be entitled to free school meals for the 2023/2024 academic year. Scotland and Wales have already started to roll this out.

Other Health Research Findings

Other Latest Market Research Insights