It's difficult to imagine anyone in the UK having the charisma and influence to demonstrate so powerfully the negative effects of sugar on teeth as Jamie Oliver did in his campaigning programme Sugar rush, broadcast on 3 September.

The British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD) is delighted that the TV chef turned lobbyist has raised awareness of the close correlation between sugar and dental decay and that he succeeded in highlighting how much added sugar there is in some food and drinks.

Claire Stevens, media spokesperson for BSPD, said that Jamie's influence would support the advice of the dental profession to limit intake of sugar and to look at food and drink labeling more carefully.

As a result of the programme, a petition calling for a tax on sugary drinks has achieved 125,000 signatures which means that Parliament will consider a debate on the subject.

Claire said: 'This is a terrific achievement. The programme conveyed very powerfully how damaging sugar is to teeth and to health generally. But the campaign needs to continue – the unacceptably high levels of dental decay in children can't be solved with a tax on sugary drinks alone.

'For every family and every community there are different challenges to be taken into account, whether it's access to dental services, availability of preventive advice, the amount of fluoride in their water, how children are weaned and the type of diet they grow up with.

'Another key challenge in some communities is social deprivation and this has just been highlighted very well this week in a report from the National Children's Bureau: Poor beginnings: Health inequalities among young children across England based on official data published by Public Health England.

'This can only be the beginning. We stand by the British Dental Association's call for the Government to implement the recommendations of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition to reduce sugar intake and the British Medical Association's call for a tax on all sugar products.'