Association between the Severity of Dental Caries and the Degree of Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet in the Pediatric Population

• Published in: Nutrients Vol. 14; no. 17; p. 3622
• Main Authors: Marqués-Martínez, Laura, Pérez-Bermejo, Marcelino, Lairón-Peris, Ana Rosa, Guinot-Barona, Clara, Borrell-García, Carla, García-Miralles, Esther
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.09.2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Adolescent; Age; Caregivers; caries; Chi-square test; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Consent; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dental caries; Dental Caries - epidemiology; Dental Caries - prevention & control; Dentin; Diet, Mediterranean; Enamel; Feeding Behavior; Humans; ICCMS; KIDMED; Mediterranean diet; Molars; Parents; Patients; Pediatric research; Pediatrics; Prevention; Questionnaires; Risk factors; Statistical analysis; Sugar; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teeth; Spain; Netherlands; ICCMS; Mediterranean diet; children; KIDMED; caries
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu14173622

Children who show better eating practices are less likely to suffer from severe caries than those who eat a diet rich in sugars. In the present study, we aimed to establish the relationship between the severity of dental caries and adherence to the Mediterranean diet. A cross-sectional study was carried out in which 263 children aged 2 to 14 years old were examined intraorally to analyze the presence and severity of caries. Children’s parents/caregivers completed the KIDMED questionnaire to determine their degree of adherence to the Mediterranean diet. The results showed that the prevalence of caries is greater than 80% in children with medium or low adherence to the Mediterranean diet, and remains significant at 67% in the high adherence group (p = 0.010). A statistically significant negative correlation of weak magnitude (r = −0.29; p < 0.001) was found between adherence and the number of carious teeth. Caries severity in the first molars is also influenced by adherence to the diet in a statistically significant way. In conclusion, there is an association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the prevalence, extension, and severity of caries in the pediatric population.