New guidance supplied by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is urging for care home staff to take oral health of residents more seriously.

The ‘Oral health for adults in care homes’ guidance indicates that more than a half of ‘older adults’ in care homes have tooth decay; compared to 40 per cent of over 75s and 33 per cent of over 85s who do not live in care homes. In addition, the research also claims that more than 400,000 adults living in UK care homes, 80 per cent of whom have some form of dementia.

Deputy chief executive of NICE, Professor Gillian Leng, commented: “Whilst some care homes provide good daily oral health for their residents, we know oral health is too often neglected. Our guideline calls for simple changes that could vastly improve the oral health and quality of life of people who are living in care homes across England.”

Read more on the guidance here