The British Dental Association has predicted that the UK will lose the equivalent of 3,000 dentists over the next 40 years.

The warning comes in evidence on future NHS staffing to a Commons Health Select Committee.

There is a lack of dentists in all areas of the health service already, the BDA argues, and this will only worsen as people keep their teeth longer and demand for dental treatment increases.

Around one-third of patients already have difficulty finding an NHS dentist and dental practices and NHS Trusts are finding it difficult to recruit.

The BDA's projections show that the dentist workforce is currently equivalent to 20,000 dentists working full-time.

This is likely to fall to the equivalent of 17,000 in the next 40 years because of problems recruiting and keeping dentists. One of the main reasons is pay.

At the same time there will be a 20% to 25% increase in the number of people keeping their natural teeth.

The number of people over 65 still with their natural teeth is expected to grow from four million now to as many as 13 million in 40 years' time.

Dental inequalities

Demand for dental sevices is rising

Dr Bill Allen, chairman of the BDA's Council said: "Reducing inequalities in health is part of the Government's strategy. If inequalities in oral health are to be addressed, the drift of dentists away from the NHS will have to be reversed.

"There is a shortage not only of NHS general practitioners but also of NHS hospital specialists and community dentists, which is compounded by low morale."

A Harris poll commissioned by the BDA in 1996 found that one in three (35%) of people claimed it was difficult to find an NHS dentist in their area.

A further Harris poll in 1998 found that one in four adults are private dental patients and just under three in four (70%) are still receiving NHS dental treatment.

Some health authorities have begun advertising abroad for dentists because they cannot attract dentists in the UK.

In East Lancashire, the Health Authority has placed advertisements in Norwegian and Swedish dental journals.

There are just over 29 million adults and children registered as NHS patients, eight million of whom are children.