title: Association between being overweight and oral health in Serbian schoolchildren.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Childhood obesity, dental caries, and periodontal disease are major public health problems due to their adverse impact on the growth and development of children.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To examine the association between nutritional status, oral health, and lifestyle habits among schoolchildren in Serbia.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study assessed 422 children and adolescents aged 6-18 years with the following dental indexes analyzed: DMF/dmf (decayed, missed, and filled teeth), plaque index (PI), and gingival index (GI). Depending on their nutritional status, the subjects were categorized, as being 'normal weight,' 'at risk of overweight,' and 'overweight.' Logistic regression was applied to study the association between the dental indexes and independent variables: gender, age, toothbrushing, nutritional status, and lifestyle factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Being overweight positively correlated with GI, but negatively correlated with the DMF/dmf index among the participants. Multivariate analysis showed a strong association between the weight category and toothbrushing with GI and PI. Overweight children (6-11 years) were less likely to have caries, whereas in older children/adolescents (12-18 years), caries was associated with the intake of sugar-sweetened juices.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Being overweight was found to be significantly associated with a higher probability of developing gingivitis and negatively associated with caries prevalence in Serbian children and adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Dejan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Markovic
authors.affiliation: Centre of Research Excellence in Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Medical Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Danijela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ristic-Medic
authors.affiliation: Centre of Research Excellence in Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Medical Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Vesna
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vucic
authors.affiliation: Institute of Mother and Child Health Care "Dr Vukan Cupic", Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Goran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mitrovic
authors.affiliation: Dental Service, Health Centre Subotica, Subotica, Serbia.
authors.forename: Jelena
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nikolic Ivosevic
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Peric
authors.affiliation: Centre of Research Excellence in Nutrition and Metabolism, Institute for Medical Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.
authors.forename: Ivana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Karadzic
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004245:DMF Index; D003729:Dental Care; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009909:Oral Health; D050177:Overweight / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015995:Prevalence; D055771:Serbia / Q000453:epidemiology