Associations between Child Snack and Beverage Consumption, Severe Dental Caries, and Malnutrition in Nepal.

The global nutrition transition and increased consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and ultra-processed snacks have contributed to increasing rates of child obesity and dental caries in developing countries. In Nepal, where child malnutrition rates are high, the relationship between malnutrition and dental caries is poorly understood. This cross-sectional study aims to assess this relationship among a convenience sample of 273 children age six months to less than 12 years in three communities in Nepal, using parent/caregiver interviews, child dental exams, and anthropometric measurements. Fisher's exact test and independent t-tests examined associations between dietary practices and severe caries and between severe caries and malnutrition, respectively. Children consumed sugar-sweetened beverages and processed snacks frequently: 80% consumed tea with sugar, 60% consumed sweet snacks, and 65% consumed processed savory snacks daily. Overall, 74% of children had untreated tooth decay, and 21% exhibited stunting malnutrition, 14% were underweight, and 6% presented wasting. Significant associations were found between daily consumption of sweets and processed snacks with severe caries and between severe caries and poorer nutritional status. These findings underscore the need to incorporate nutrition and oral health promotion and dental treatment into maternal-child health services and schools and to strengthen policies to reduce children's access to junk food.

Clinico-epidemiological profile of oral potentially malignant and malignant conditions among areca nut, tobacco and alcohol users in Eastern India: A hospital based study.

CONTEXT: With an increase in the abuse of various oral habitual products in India over the past few decades; the incidence of oral potentially malignant conditions as leukoplakia, oral submucous fibrosis and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) rates have also increased. No recent study has been conducted reporting the scenario of oral cancer and potentially malignant conditions in Eastern India (specifically Kolkata). AIMS: The present study was conducted at Dr. R. Ahmed Dental College, Kolkata during 2010-2011 to find a possible correlation between the effects of the different oral habits, age, sex and the different types of oral mucosal lesions among patients reported to the hospital. This study also enabled us to see the predilection of the various histopathological stages of the lesions for different sites of the oral cavity. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study group consisted of 698 patients having either oral potentially malignant or malignant lesion. The control group consisted of 948 patients who had reported to the hospital for different oral/dental problems and had the habit of tobacco, areca nut and/or alcohol usage for at least 1 year. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The unadjusted odds ratio, the 95% confidence interval, and the P value were calculated to correlate patients with/without different kinds of habit and having/not having various kinds of oral lesions. RESULTS: Our study shows that for males having the habit of taking smokeless tobacco or mixed habit poses the highest risk for developing SCC. For females, significant risk of developing SCC was found in patients habituated to processed areca nut chewing. CONCLUSION: This study presents probably for the first time in recent years the occurrence of oral potentially malignant and malignant conditions amongst patients having deleterious habits in a hospital based population of Kolkata.