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Association of dental caries and weight status in 6- to 7-year-old Filipino children

Clinical Oral Investigations volume 17, pages 1515–1523 (2013)Cite this article

Abstract

Objectives

The aims of the study were (1) to assess in 6- to 7-year-old Filipino children caries prevalence and experience and the weight status and (2) to investigate the association between dental caries and weight status.

Materials and methods

Dental and anthropometric examinations were conducted on 1,962 6- to 7-year-old children during the National Oral Health Survey in 2005–2006. Dental caries assessments were carried out using World Health Organisation (WHO) criteria (1997). Weight status was assessed with body mass index according to WHO growth reference. A multivariable logistic regression model was applied to investigate the effect of dental caries and sociodemographic variables on the children’s weight status.

Results

Caries prevalence was 96.8 % in primary and 39.7 % in permanent teeth, and caries experience was 8.4 dmft and 0.6 DMFT. Of the children, 17.8 % were underweight, 73.0 % had normalweight, 6.0 % were overweight and 3.2 % were obese. Girls had a lower risk of being underweight than boys odds ratios (OR) 0.70, confidence interval (CI) 0.55–0.88. Children living in rural areas and with no television at home were more likely to be underweight (OR 1.36, CI 1.07–1.72; OR 1.37, CI 1.07–1.76, respectively). Fewer primary and permanent teeth were risk factors for being underweight (OR 0.93, CI 0.92–0.95; OR 0.90, CI 0.89–0.94, respectively).

Conclusions

Underweight was associated stronger with demographic and socioeconomic conditions than with dental variables. However, underweight and dental caries are public health issues of high priority affecting children at an important phase of their development.

Clinical relevance

Definite conclusions upon an association between dental caries and weight status in high caries risk schoolchildren cannot be drawn.

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Acknowledgments

Data collection was part of the National Oral Health Survey, which was financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Title 685.01, through InWent Capacity Building, Bonn, Germany). The funding entity had no involvement in (1) study design; (2) the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; (3) the writing of the report and (4) the decision to submit the manuscript for publication. None of the authors received any funding for writing the paper.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Affiliations

  1. WHO Collaborating Centre for Prevention of Oral Diseases, Department of Preventive and Paediatric Dentistry, Jena University Hospital, Bachstr. 18, 07743, Jena, Germany

    Roswitha Heinrich-Weltzien

  2. Department of Education, Health and Nutrition Centre, P. O. Box 119, City of Division, 9000, Cagayan de Oro, Philippines

    Bella Monse

  3. Fit for School International, London, UK

    Habib Benzian

  4. Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Epidemiology, Ingolstaedter Landstrasse 1, 85764, Neuherberg, Germany

    Joachim Heinrich

  5. Institute of Human Genetics, Jena University Hospital, Kollegiengasse 10, 07743, Jena, Germany

    Katrin Kromeyer-Hauschild

Authors
  1. Roswitha Heinrich-Weltzien
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  2. Bella Monse
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  3. Habib Benzian
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  4. Joachim Heinrich
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  5. Katrin Kromeyer-Hauschild
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Roswitha Heinrich-Weltzien.

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Heinrich-Weltzien, R., Monse, B., Benzian, H. et al. Association of dental caries and weight status in 6- to 7-year-old Filipino children. Clin Oral Invest 17, 1515–1523 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-012-0849-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00784-012-0849-3

Keywords

  • Dental caries
  • Weight status
  • Body mass index
  • Anthropometry
  • Philippines
  • Schoolchildren