According to a recent study published in the “Journal of Dental Research” it has been found that people who are low income have fewer teeth than people who are better off financially.
The research has basically taken into account the correlation between a state’s financial status and tooth loss.
The research has also analyzed health data of approximately 380,000 different residents of these US states.
Researchers have also measured the following:
- The wealth of the respective state based on average income
- How many states undergo fluoridation process for their water supplies
According to the results of the researchers, there is a clear and strong bond between the socioeconomic status of an area and dental health. Those people, who live in more “disadvantaged” areas, are exposed to a considerably increased risk (~20%) of suffering from tooth loss.
Comparing data from 14 different countries, researchers concluded that people, who received more dental care services, were actually the ones who had the highest income values. According to E. Dianna Rekow who is the president of the International and American Associations for Dental Research, the problem has drastically grown on a global level as well, not only nationally.
There is a poor access to proper healthcare for low income individuals and there also many inequalities to be found generally in the healthcare systems.
Those people who know that in their area the water supplies are not fluoridated, they should get their fluoride intake from bottled drinking water or by purchasing toothpaste which has added fluoride levels.
It is true that these are more costly products, but one should think of it that they invest into preventing dental decay. Thus, by purchasing these products they are basically saving money on the long run.
Also, it is very important that parents take their children to dentist visits, even if there are no visible signs of dental decay. These oral health damages are many times not visible, nor do they produce discomfort. But with a visit to the dentist’s office, all these problems can be discovered early and treated in time, before they affect other teeth or the gums.
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