Food insecurity and oral health of adolescents from rural settlement

Objectives: To verify the association between food insecurity and oral health of adolescents from a rural settlement.

Methods: It was carried out a cross-sectional study in a rural settlement in Brazil. All people between 12-18 years were invited to participated (n=70). The following variables were obtained: DMFT index, Oral Hygiene Index, the weight and height measurements of adolescents, variables related to food insecurity, food consumption, social capital and sociodemographic features. Overweight and obesity were classified using World Health Organization Criteria. Saliva samples were collected to identify Streptococcus spp and Candida spp. The data analyzes was performed by G test, Wilcoxon test and Pearson correlation (p<0.05).
Results: The sample consisted of twenty volunteers who had accepted the invitation to enroll in the study. Over 30% of the adolescents presented overweight or obesity. The adolescents with aggravated food insecurity (20.0%), presented higher caries experience (DMFT=3.5). The female gender and domestic agglomeration showed a higher prevalence of untreated dental caries (CDNT) and more serious food insecurity. The Oral Hygiene index average was 1.45 among the volunteers with moderate/severe food insecurity. The population presented high prevalence of CDNT (65.0%), and the adolescents' perception about community participation in decision-making processes was relevant. It was not verified significant statistical difference among CDNT and Streptococcus spp or Candida spp.

Conclusions: The association between food insecurity and dental caries does not showed a statistically significant difference, with a higher prevalence in adolescents with moderate and severe insecurity. Food insecurity was associated with the years of study by the person in charge of the house, and the CDNT with the consumption of ultra-processed foods.