Abstract
Objective: According to the National Health Survey in 2013, nutritional problems in Indonesia are still a concern, and caries is the most prevalent dental disease. Primary dentition is developed during a mother’s pregnancy period. Thus, mothers’ nutritional status during pregnancy could determine the health of their children’s primary dentition. This study objective was to analyze the relationship between mothers’ nutritional status and dental caries in their children’s primary teeth.Methods: In total, 281 children under 5-year-old were selected from a health screening in Depok Sub-District, West Java. Information about maternal nutritional status was collected through the mother and child’s health book. Information about dental caries was collected through clinical examinations using the dmft index.Result: The prevalence of mothers with poor nutritional status was 22.8%, and 55.2% of their children had caries. The occurrence of dental caries in primary dentition between children of mothers with poor and good nutritional status was significantly different (p<0.001). The likelihood of getting caries was 1.85 times higher (95% confidence interval: 1.5–2.2) among children of mothers with poor nutritional status than among children of mothers with a good nutritional status.Conclusion: Children of mothers with a poor nutritional status would likely present with dental caries and had a higher risk of dental caries compared to children of mothers with a good nutritional status.
Highlights
Indonesia is a developing country that is still undergoing common nutritional problems
Information about dental caries was collected through clinical examinations using the dmft index
Children of mothers with a poor nutritional status would likely present with dental caries and had a higher risk of dental caries compared to children of mothers with a good nutritional status
Summary
Indonesia is a developing country that is still undergoing common nutritional problems. Indonesia Health Basic Research (Riskesdas) in 2013 [1] showed the prevalence of chronic energy deficiency in pregnant mothers, newborn length under 48 cm, and stunting in children younger than 5-year-old (24.2%, 20.2%, and 37.2%, respectively). The number and variety of nutrients varies across foods. Several factors affect the nutritional adequacy of each individual including gender, weight, height, age, physiological condition, and metabolism. Nutritional status is a health condition related to food and nutritional intake, absorption, metabolism, and excretion. Nutritional status represented by a certain variable can be used to indicate the balance between the input and excretion of nutrition. The measurement of nutritional status can distinguish between good and poor nutritional condition [2]
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