Middlesbrough in top 10 worst areas for tooth decay in kids under 5
The council and NHS are now launching a scheme to try and prevent further tooth decay in young children.
Middlesbrough is the 10th worst area in England for dental health in under fives.
New figures from Public Health Englandshow 17% of three year olds in Middlesbrough already have decayed teeth.
That's 40% higher than the national average.
As a result, Middlesbrough Council and NHS England Cumbria and the North East will be working to reduce these figures.
They are launching a joint programme called Starting Well: A Smile4Life Initiative.
They'll be encouraging parents to take their children to the dentists by the time they are one, giving preventative advice about sugar intake and increasing exposure to flouride.
Charlie Daniels, chair of the Tees Local Dental Committee, said dental health inequalities mean Middlesbrough’s most deprived wards have the highest rates of dental disease and the lowest levels of attendance, making prevention more difficult.
"Its a dreadful situation the parents have been up all night and a frought, the kids are in pain and it can be time consuming for dentists.
"We are on the front line and we see an awful lot of this.
"Parents think there are no problems if they aren't complaining of anything.
"But when they are complaining it is when they are in pain and then its often too late to do anything other than fairly serious intervention.
"Its about trying to get the preventitive methods out there.
"Getting kids in early rather than waiting for problems to get really serious."
Charlie Daniels added that many parents are unaware that dentist appointments for under 18s are free, and that parents should be bringing their kids in for check ups from the age of one.
The programme involves pre-school and school supervised tooth brushing programmes which will see over 5,500 children brushing their teeth daily.
The programme will be available to all children, with a focus on those who are not currently visiting the dentist and under one-year-olds