Aim: The aim of the study was to evaluate the association between body mass index, dental caries (DMFT), untreated dental caries (PUFA) and socioeconomic status in 12 to 15 year old school children.
Material and methods: The study sample consisted of 800 children aged 12 to 15 years, who were selected from 8 schools located in the district-Panchkula (Haryana). Intraoral examination was done for assessment of dental caries by using DMFT index (WHO, 2013).The clinical manifestations of untreated dental caries were assessed visually by using the PUFA index (2010). Socioeconomic status of children was assessed by using Kuppuswami’s socioeconomic scale 2016. After one week, anthropometric measurements of children were taken to calculate the body mass index (BMI) of children.
Results: Among 800 school children, 503 (62.9%) children had dental caries. The body mass index (BMI) of children was weakly correlated with DMFT (r=0.285) and PUFA (r=0.109) whereas average correlation was found between BMI and SES (r= 0.424). On applying chi-square test, a statistical significant correlation was found between BMI and DMFT (p<0.01), BMI and PUFA (p<0.01) and BMI and SES (p<0.01). SES of children was weakly correlated with DMFT (r= 0.216) but no correlation was found between SES and PUFA (r=0.052, p=0.145).
Conclusion: The study concluded that a significant but weak positive correlation was seen between dental caries and BMI. A significantly positive correlation was found between PUFA and BMI. The severity of dental caries increased with increase in BMI. No correlation was found between PUFA and SES.
Is body mass index truly related to dental caries? Survey on predisposing factors for overweight among Indian school children
