Abstract
There is growing interest in the relationship between body mass index and oral health. Previous study showed that being underweight was significantly associated with having lower masticatory performance. This study was performed to assess the relationship between an underweight body mass index lower than 18.5 and the number of natural teeth using nationally representative data. Initially, a total of 25,534 individuals were candidates in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The analysis in this study was confined to 17,870 subjects who were 19 years or older and without missing values for outcome variables. Body mass index and number of natural teeth were evaluated. Multiple regression analysis was used to evaluate the risk of tooth loss in relation to body mass index. Adjusted odds ratios and their 95% confidence intervals for chewing discomfort in individuals who were underweight, normal, overweight, obese, and extremely obese were 1.712(1.156–2.535), 1.111(0.939–1.315), 1(reference), 0.949(0.798–1.128), and 1.172(0.807–1.700), respectively, after adjustment. The association between underweight and tooth loss was proven by multiple logistic regression analyses after adjusting for confounding factors. Underweight may be considered a potential risk indicator for tooth loss in Korean adults.
Highlights
There is growing interest in the relationship between body mass index and oral health because both are significant public health concerns[1]
Age was significantly lower in participants with a body mass index lower than 18.5
The percentage of metabolic syndrome was significantly lower in underweight participants
Summary
There is growing interest in the relationship between body mass index and oral health because both are significant public health concerns[1]. Body mass index has been reported to be related to periodontitis, suggesting that obesity is a risk factor for periodontitis[2]. Overweight and obese preschool children have been shown to be at higher risk for dental caries than normaland underweight children[4]. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, no association was found between body mass index and periodontitis[5]. It was shown that body mass index was not related to dental caries[2]. In multiple logistic regression analyses, it was shown that being underweight was significantly associated with having lower masticatory performance (odds ratio of 2.0)[7]. This study was performed to assess the relationship between underweight, with a body mass index lower than 18.5, and number of natural teeth using nationally representative data
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
