As if being back at work in the new year wasn’t bad enough already, now we’re being told to eat fewer sweet treats with colleagues.

It’s because dentists say eating biscuits and cakes in the office is contributing to obesity and poor oral health.

The Faculty of Dental Surgery (FDS) reckons employees should cut workplace 'cake culture' in a bid to get healthy in 2017.

Professor Nigel Hunt, dean of the FDS at the Royal College of Surgeons, said: "Managers want to reward staff for their efforts, colleagues want to celebrate special occasions and workers want to bring back a gift from their holidays.

"While these sweet treats might be well meaning, they are also contributing to the current obesity epidemic and poor oral health.

"We need a culture change in offices and other workplaces that encourages healthy eating and helps workers avoid caving in to sweet temptations such as cakes, sweets and biscuits.”

The FDS's top tips for cutting sugar consumption are:

  • Consider low-sugar alternatives.
  • Reduce portion sizes.
  • Avoid snacking and keep sugar as a lunchtime treat.
  • Keep a "sugar schedule" to limit sugar intake.
  • Think about where sweet treats are positioned - if they are nearby and visible people may eat more.

Tam Fry, spokesman for the National Obesity Forum, said: "Taking cakes and biscuits into the office at any time does your workmates no favours even if you offer them to be nice.

"The dental surgeons are correct when it comes to teeth but remember they have bariatric colleagues who operate on those who just can't turn down such things.

"Such food is neither a treat nor a reward. You may not know who in the office is secretly dieting, in which case they won't appreciate your gesture."