Nearly a quarter of Scots consider dental treatment unaffordable

The survey was carried out by YouGov on behalf of Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) and received responses from more than 2,000 people aged 18 and older. Overall, 23 per cent of the respondents said that they would like dental treatment but are unable to pay for it. Also, 25 per cent said that they found it difficult or very difficult to cope with the costs of everyday life at their present level of income.

In addition, survey respondents were asked how often they ran out of money completely before their next payday. A quarter replied that this was the case always or most of the time and a further 22 per cent responded that this happened sometimes. When asked how this made them feel, 71 per cent said they felt stressed and 42 per cent felt anxious.

Remarking upon the survey’s findings, CAS Chief Executive Derek Mitchell told the British Dental Journal: “Advisers in Citizens Advice bureaux across Scotland deal every day with people who are in financial difficulty, so we are no strangers to the problems people are experiencing. However, it is a shock to see the extent of these problems in the population as a whole.”

“It's clear from these figures that too many families in Scotland are simply not able to cope on their current income. And even those who are managing are only one financial shock away from falling below the line,” he added.

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