Abstract
Background:
Although the use of Food Consumption Markers is foreseen in primary health care, their use by oral health teams is still incipient.
Objective:
The objective of this study was to investigate the association of cariogenic food consumption, measured through the food consumption markers, with the occurrence of untreated dental caries in preschoolers.
Method:
The study included 432 children (aged 18–36 months) in a representative sample of the Municipal Centers for Early Childhood Education (São José dos Pinhais, Pr). The parents/guardians answered a socioeconomic and demographic questionnaire, and the children were examined by a calibrated examiner (kappa=0.80). Cariogenic food consumption was measured using the Food Consumption Markers instrument (Ministry of Health, Brazil). The score of consumption of cariogenic foods was obtained by the sum of reports of consumption of foods with free sugar (SCF).
Results:
The prevalence of untreated dental caries was 21% (95%CI 17–24). In the multiple Poisson regression with robust variance, the higher prevalence of untreated dental caries was associated with the higher SCF (RPa=1.16; 95%CI 1.01–1.34; p=0.035), with the older age of the children (PRa=1.05; 95%CI 1.01–1.10; p=0.021), and inversely to the higher guardians’ education (PRa=0.62; 95%CI: 0.42–0.92; p=0.017).
Conclusion:
Cariogenic food consumption, measured through the Food Consumption Markers instrument, was associated with a higher prevalence of untreated dental caries in preschoolers.
Keywords:
dental caries; diet, cariogenic; child; eating