Diet, Body mass index and Dental caries among Thai Children aged 2 to 5 years

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine if there is an association between dental caries and body mass index (BMI) among Thai children aged 3 to 5 years.
Methods: We randomly selected 100 students attending Suan Missakawan School, Bangkok, Thailand. We examined each child to determine the number of decayed, missing and filled teeth giving a DMFT score. We measured the height and weight for each subject and calculated their body mass index (BMI) in kilograms divided by height in meter squared. Parents were completed a questionnaire asking general information and the diet of the child. Data from the questionnaire were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Associations between caries and variables were examined using the Spearman’s correlation with significance set at p<0.05.
Results: Total participants were 100 (0% drop out rate). The mean±SD age of the subject, the mean±SD DMFT score of the subject and the mean±SD BMI for the subjects were 4.21(±0.71) years old, 5.27(±4.78) and 16.46(±2.56) kg/m², respectively. Seventy-one percent of subjects had a normal BMI, 25% were overweight and 4% were underweight. Eighteen percent had no caries (DMFT score=0), 32% had a few caries (DMFT score=0.1-3.0), 14% had many caries (DMFT scores=3.1-6.9), and 36% had very many caries (DMFT≥7). The DMFT score was not significantly associated with a history of sugar consumption or BMI. The DMFT score was negatively associated with fat and iron consumption based on the diet reports.
Conclusions: No association between caries and BMI or diet.