Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health senior research fellow Dr Jason Armfield has called for health warnings on labels to include the risks of tooth decay.
Dr Armfield is also the lead author of a study of 16,800 Australian children that found 56 per cent of those aged between five and 16 consumed at least one sweet drink, such as soft drink or juice, each day.
Australian Beverages Council chief executive Geoff Parker said it was important to teach children early on about good dental hygiene:
"However, singling out one particular part of the diet is a misguided approach to dealing with an issue such as dental hygiene," he said.
Mr Kennewell agreed with the idea of putting health warnings on soft drinks, but questioned how effective they would be.
A spokeswoman for the Federal Department of Health and Ageing said the Federal Government was "committed to re-focusing the health system towards prevention and to supporting efforts to reduce obesity and other health issues caused by poor diet and exercise".