Tooth loss and intakes of nutrients and foods: a nationwide survey of Japanese dentists.
OBJECTIVE
To clarify the association of tooth loss with dietary intakes among dentists, for whom sufficient dental care is available.


METHODS
We analyzed the data from 20 366 Japanese dentists (mean age +/- SD, 52.2 +/- 12.1 years; women 8.0%) who participated in a nationwide cohort study from 2001 to 2006. The baseline questionnaire included a validated food-frequency questionnaire to estimate intakes of foods and nutrients. We computed the geometric means of daily intakes by the number of teeth, adjusting for age, sex, smoking, physical activity, and history of diabetes.


RESULTS
The mean intakes of some key nutrients and food groups, such as carotene, vitamins A and C, milk and dairy products, and vegetables including green-yellow vegetables, decreased with the increasing number of teeth lost (P for trend <0.05). On the contrary, mean intakes of carbohydrate, rice, and confectioneries were increased among those with fewer teeth (P for trend <0.05). The difference in the geometric mean (%) between totally edentulous subjects and those with > or =25 teeth, that is [(Geometric mean for > or =25 teeth) - (Geometric mean for 0 teeth)]/(Geometric mean for > or =25 teeth) x 100, was 14.3%, 8.6%, 6.1%, and -6.1% for carotene, vitamin C, vitamin A, and carbohydrate, respectively. For food groups, it was 26.3%, 11.9%, 5.6%, -9.5%, and -29.6% for milk and dairy products, green-yellow vegetables, total vegetables, rice, and confectioneries, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Tooth loss was linked with poorer nutrition even among dentists.
Wakai
Kenji
K
Department of Preventive Medicine/Biostatistics and Medical Decision Making, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan. wakai@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Naito
Mariko
M
Naito
Toru
T
Kojima
Masaaki
M
Nakagaki
Haruo
H
Umemura
Osami
O
Yokota
Makoto
M
Hanada
Nobuhiro
N
Kawamura
Takashi
T
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage; D002182:Candy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000008:administration & dosage; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003611:Dairy Products / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003815:Dentists; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology; D004032:Diet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D007576:Jaw, Edentulous, Partially / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D009066:Mouth, Edentulous / Q000453:epidemiology; D009752:Nutritional Status; D012275:Oryza; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D016388:Tooth Loss / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014675:Vegetables; D014801:Vitamin A / Q000008:administration & dosage
D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates; D014801:Vitamin A; D002338:Carotenoids; D001205:Ascorbic Acid