Our children's teeth are rotting, and dentists want something done about it.

Consumer New Zealand wants the government to back a rule change that would make sugar labelling mandatory for manufacturers, calls that are being echoed by the New Zealand Dental Association.

Spokesman Dr Rob Beaglehole said kids are consuming too much sugar and it's reflected in the state of their teeth.

"On a day to day basis, there's dentists who are taking out teeth from very young kids. Many parents don't realise how many teaspoons of sugar are in each drink that they are giving their kids."

Dr Beaglehole said that it is an expensive problem.

"Last 7,500 children had one or multiple teeth taken out under general anaesthetic. Each general anaesthetic costs the hospital system system $4,000."

The median daily intake of total sugars is 24 teaspoons for women and 30 for men.