Abstract
Background/Aim: Eating behaviour in children has wide range from anorexia, to selective eating, fussy eater, neophobic/pouching of food & slow eating. Eating behaviour in childhood has been implicated in the development of dental caries and further affecting the body mass index of the child. The aim was to assess the Problematic Eating Behaviour (PEB) and its association with dental caries status of the child. Material and Methods: Parents of 150 children between 3-8 years of age were divided into 2 groups, Group A (3-5 years) and Group B (6-8 years). The parents completed the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ) & the child's dental caries status was recorded. The collected data was subjected to statistical analysis using unpaired t test & Pearson's correlation coefficient test. Results: The results showed that the dental caries status was significantly higher in younger age group (3-5 years) than older age group (6-8 years). Further evaluating the PEB using CEBQ, there was no significant relation found between PEB and dental caries in younger age group of children (3-5 years), but in the older age group (6-8 years) the Factor 4 Desire to Drink (p=0,274) and Factor 5 Satiety Responsiveness (p=0,291) were significantly associated to the dental caries. Conclusions: Eating behaviour can contribute to the development of caries and this has been successfully studied with the use of CEBQ in the present study.
Highlights
Dental caries is the most common communicable disease of childhood, affecting 41% of children in the United States (American Academy of Pediatrics [AAP], 2009; Centers of Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2005a)[1]
Chatoor et al reported that one in four parents who brought in their child for a routine pediatric checkup was concerned about their child’s eating[5], while Forsythe found that one third of mothers believed their infants experienced feeding difficulties, such as excessive spitting and excessive crying, during first four months of life[6]
The study was approved by the institutional ethical committee and informed consent was obtained from the parents and students involved
Summary
Dental caries is the most common communicable disease of childhood, affecting 41% of children in the United States (American Academy of Pediatrics [AAP], 2009; Centers of Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2005a)[1]. The prevalence of dental caries in India among preschool children varies from 19,2% to 71,1%. Feeding problems during childhood are common concerns encountered in pediatric practice. Feeding disorder are reported to be present among 25% of children[3]. These ‘troublesome eating behaviour’s include picky and highly selective eating, food refusal, manifestation of negative affect and negativistic behaviour during eating, exceedingly slow eating, and having tantrums or angry outbursts during mealtimes[4]. Chatoor et al reported that one in four parents who brought in their child for a routine pediatric checkup was concerned about their child’s eating[5], while Forsythe found that one third of mothers believed their infants experienced feeding difficulties, such as excessive spitting and excessive crying, during first four months of life[6]
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