Recently, American scientists from the Rutger School of Health Professions found that the number of remaining teeth in elderly adults (65-89 years) is strongly connected to obesity risk. Considering that about 30% of the population at that age are edentulous, such a correlation may shed light on the new weight-management approaches for this group.
Regardless of the individual's natural adaptation to tooth loss and oral dysfunction, these conditions noticeably affect human health and lead to malnutrition because people with chewing problems prefer to avoid food with crucial nutrients, such as fruits, vegetables, and other products that require thorough grinding, replacing them with unhealthy analogs.
What did scientists research?
The minimum functional dentition is defined as 21. The study included 1765 recipients aged 65-89 with a lack of some teeth (including above the minimum) and divided them into four groups by their health condition: healthy-weight group, underweight and overweight group, and the last one—with obesity.
As it turned out, aged people with functional dentition are about 40% less likely to develop obesity. In addition, scientists found that each additional tooth (including implants and dentures) decreases the risk of obesity in recipients by 2%. Also, research revealed that each posterior occluding pair decreases the risk of obesity by 7%. Meanwhile, anterior occluding pairs show no effects on patients' body mass.
Researchers' recommendation
Older people are susceptible to every physiological condition, especially obesity, that affects various organism systems. Dentists can help to prevent dental causes by:
- Tracking patients IBM and managing their diets according to their chewing ability
- Ask patients about their comfort during biting, chewing, and swallowing, and if a problem occurs, solve it immediately.
- Informing the patients about the importance of dentures and implants for their health.
