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Baby tooth decay linked to obesity
23rd Jun 2010
A study of young children undergoing treatment for cavities in their first teeth found that nearly 28% had a body mass index (BMI) above the 85th percentile, indicating overweight or obesity.
That percentage is more than 5% higher than the estimated national average, fuelling growing concern that poor food choices, such as those popular, convenient sugary ‘sippy' drinks, are contributing to both obesity and tooth decay in very young children.
Dental cavities are among the most common chronic childhood diseases – 5-10% of young children have early childhood cavities, and childhood obesity has more than tripled in the past 30 years, reaching nearly 20% by 2008.
Lead author of the study, Kathleen Bethin, associate professor of paediatrics at the University at Buffalo says: ‘We hypothesised that poor nutritional choices may link obesity and dental decay in young children, but there is very little published data associating these two health issues.
'The aim of our study was to obtain preliminary data on BMI, energy intake and metabolic profiles in young children with tooth decay.'
The study involved 65 children, aged two to five years, who were treated in the operating room at the Women and Children's Hospital where Professor Bethin is director of the paediatric endocrinology and diabetes fellowship programme.
All children required anaesthesia due to the severity of their dental problems. The children, who had been fasting for 8 to 12 hours, were weighed and measured for height.
After the patients were anaesthetised, researchers measured waist circumference and drew blood.
Parents completed a food questionnaire while their children were in surgery.
The data showed that 18 of the 65 children, approximately 28%, had a BMI above the 85th percentile, which Professor Bethin noted might have been even higher if the children hadn't been fasting.
Waist circumference compared to height was significantly higher in the overweight and obese children.
Approximately 71% of the children had a calorie intake higher than the normal 1,200 per day for their age group.
Professor Bethin adds: ‘The main point of our findings is that poor nutrition may link obesity to tooth decay. Thus, the dental office, or 'dental home,' may be an ideal place to educate families about nutrition and the risks of obesity and dental decay.'
‘Our results found no difference in total calories consumed by the overweight and healthy weight kids, so the problem isn't overeating, per se, just making the wrong food choices.'
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