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Drinking sugary sports drinks and following a high carbohydrate diet has left many elite athletes with dental health so bad it affects their performance, researchers have found.

They say tooth decay affects upto 75% of elite athletes, and a third of medical problems at the London 2012 Games were dental.

They also say that athletes were more likely to suffer eating disorders as they tried to control their weight. 

Don't drink it! Sugary drinks have become a key part of sports training - but have left many athletes with major dental problems, it has been revealed.

Diet is not the only culprit, says the research.

It found there is little in the way of education or encouragement to help athletes appreciate the importance of good dental health on their training and performance.

The Consensus Statement, which draws on a comprehensive review of the published evidence and a recent symposium on the lessons of the London 2012 Olympic Games, is intended as a call to action.

The UK and North American authors, all experts in dental health and sport and exercise medicine, point out that dental consultations accounted for almost a third of all medical visits at London 2012, and that demand has continued to increase at subsequent major competitive events.

Eating disorders are also likely to be a factor, particularly in sports, such as boxing, horse riding, gymnastics, and long distance running, where body weight, composition, and aesthetics are crucial. 

Experts say the problems must be addressed.

'Oral health could be an easy win for athletes, as the oral conditions that can affect performance are all easily preventable,' said Professor Ian Needleman of the UCL Eastman Dental Institute 

'Professional athletes and their teams spend a lot of time and money on ways to marginally improving performance, as this can make all the difference in elite sports. 

'Simple strategies to prevent oral health problems can offer marginal performance gains that require little to no additional time or money. 

'Things like better tooth brushing techniques and higher fluoride toothpastes could prevent the toothache and associated sleeping and training difficulties that can make the crucial difference between gold and silver.' 

There is a wealth of published evidence to show the impact of poor dental health on wellbeing, say the authors. 

'With clear psychosocial impacts of oral health, it would be surprising if training and performance were not affected in those athletes with poor oral health,' they write.

And this could be especially important in competition, where marginal gains...or losses can make all the difference, they say.

The intense dietary and training pressures on athletes could put them at high risk of oral health problems for many reasons, the team say. 

Researchers looked at published evidence and data from the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Researchers say water is a far better option for athletes

Saliva helps to protect teeth from decay and erosion, so dehydration and drying of the mouth could increase the risk of oral health problems. 

The amount of energy that athletes need for training often means they have high-carbohydrate diets and regularly use sugary, acidic energy drinks. 

These may contribute to decay and erosion in athletes' teeth.

'We do not want to demonise energy drinks and are not saying that athletes shouldn't be using them,' says Professor Needleman. 

'However, people should be aware of the risks to oral health and can take simple measures to mitigate these.

'For example, water or hypotonic drinks are likely to be more suitable for simple hydration, and spit don't rinse after tooth brushing. 

'For sports where athletes need a lot of energy drinks, high fluoride toothpastes and mouthrinses should be seriously considered.'