Subject: Periodontitis and Three Health-Enhancing Behaviors
Background: Maintaining normal weight, engaging in the recommended
level of exercise, and eating healthy food are known to improve
general health. The impact of these behaviors on periodontal
health
is not well documented. This study is aimed at examining whether
the
increased number of these behaviors is associated with a decrease
in
the prevalence of periodontitis in a United States population.
Methods: This study utilized data on 12,110 individuals who
participated in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used
to
estimate the association between the number of health-enhancing
behaviors and periodontitis prevalence. Healthenhancing behaviors
included maintaining normal weight (body mass index [BMI],
18.5 to
24.9 kg/m2), engaging in the recommended level of exercises
( 5
episodes of moderate or 3 episodes of vigorous-intensity
physical
activity per week), and having a high-quality diet (healthy
eating
index >80).
Results: After controlling for age, gender, race\ethnicity,
cigarette
smoking, other tobacco products, education, diabetes, poverty
index,
census region, acculturation, vitamin use, time since the last
dental
visit, dental calculus, and gingival bleeding, a 1-unit increase
in
the number of the three health-enhancing behaviors was associated
with a 16% reduction in the prevalence of periodontitis (odds
ratio
[OR] = 0.84; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.77 to 0.93). Individuals
who maintained normal weight, engaged in the recommended level
of
exercise, and had a high-quality diet were 40% less likely
to have
periodontitis compared to individuals who maintained none of
these
health-enhancing behaviors.Conclusion: An increased number
of health-
enhancing behaviors is associated with a lower periodontitis
prevalence. J Periodontol 2005;76:1362-1366.
