NSW Health figures revealed children in that age group are far more likely than other people to need hospital treatment for dental work which could have been avoided if they had regularly brushed their teeth, had regular check-ups and consumed less sugar.

Orange dentist and Australian Dental Association NSW board member Dr Tim McAnulty said he was seeing an increase in children aged five to nine with decay in their first teeth, who did not want to be treated without a general anaesthetic and had to go to hospital.

GRAPH: Age breakdown

"If you've got kids and they need treatment [however] they are not going to sit in the chair," he said.

"We don't want the kids to be traumatised. We don't want them to develop dental phobias."

Dr McAnulty said parents needed to limit children's sugar intake.

"There is a lot of hidden sugar in drinks these days, and in processed foods particularly," he said.

Dr McAnulty said 30 per cent of Australian children aged six had tooth decay, increasing to 40 per cent by the age of 14.

GRAPH: How we compare

"You can put it down to sugar. Without sugar you don't have decay. [About] 90 per cent of dental disease is preventable," he said.

Dr McAnulty said it was important first teeth were not removed too early.

"We want people to have their teeth for life. If they lose their teeth early they'll have orthodontic problems later," he said.

Dr McAnulty said while dental work was expensive for families there were government funding assistance and community health programs available to help people receiving family tax benefits.

The latest health figures showed 985 people of all ages in the Western NSW Local Health District went to hospital in 2017-18 for potentially avoidable dental work.

It was at a higher rate than the state average and well up on the 683 people who needed such treatment in 2001-02.

Dental Health Week starts on Monday.