Abstract
Childhood dental caries and obesity are prevalent health problems. Results from previous studies of the caries–obesity relationship are conflicting. This study aimed to assess the association between anthropometric status and dental caries among schoolchildren, taking into account dietary habits, oral hygiene, and sociodemographic factors. This cross-sectional study recruited 569 children aged 6–12 years from five elementary schools in central Taiwan. Each child underwent an oral health examination and anthropometric measurements. The DMFT (decayed, missing due to caries, and filled permanent teeth) and deft (decayed, extracted, and filled primary teeth) indexes were calculated to record caries experience. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on food intake frequency and other related factors. The World Health Organization’s reference data was applied to define weight status: obese, overweight, and normal/underweight. The results showed that the mean (±standard deviation) deft and DMFT scores were 2.3 ± 2.6 and 0.7 ± 1.2, respectively, among participating children. The prevalence of obesity and overweight was 18.1% and 18.5%, respectively. After comprehensive evaluation of potential confounders, weight status was not an independent predictor of DMFT or deft scores in the negative binomial regression models. In conclusion, weight status was not associated with caries scores in primary or permanent teeth among 6–12 year-old schoolchildren.
Highlights
Childhood dental caries is one of the major public health issues in numerous countries.The Global Burden of Disease 2017 Study estimated that globally 532 million children had untreated caries in primary teeth [1]
The descriptive characteristics and dental caries experiences of 569 participating children are shown on Table 1
Regarding the child’s medical history, the prevalence of the top five physiciandiagnosed diseases among participating children were: allergic rhinitis (20.7%), otitis media (6.4%), atopic dermatitis (5.4%), asthma (3.5%), and sinusitis (3.3%)
Summary
Childhood dental caries is one of the major public health issues in numerous countries.The Global Burden of Disease 2017 Study estimated that globally 532 million children had untreated caries in primary teeth [1]. Childhood dental caries is one of the major public health issues in numerous countries. 60–90% of school-aged children experienced dental caries [2]. Dental caries may cause pain, impair masticatory function, and affect growth, general health, and quality of life [2,3,4,5]. Overweight/obesity is one of the most common health problems that affect children worldwide. About 18% of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years were overweight or obese in 2016 [6]. Childhood obesity can have profound effects on children’s physical health, psychosocial health and quality of life [7,8,9,10]. Overweight/obese children are more likely to become obese adults and have increased risk of multiple diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, in adulthood [7,8,9,10]
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