The Importance of Oral Health and Nutrition

Kari Barden
Senior Seminar
22nd February 2016

Prevention by definition, prevention is the act of stopping something from happening

or arising (1). In the healthcare field, a healthcare professional often spends his or her whole
life trying to prevent patients from getting diseases that could permanently damage their body.
Obesity, heart disease, and diabetes are all diseases that have steps which people can take in
order to prevent them. Scientific evidence has been linked to the field of nutrition that shows the
prominence of preventative care through oral examinations (1). Although most people do not
think of it as an important part of dietetics, oral health and nutrition work hand in hand. The list
of things that link the two fields is innumerable. Eating disorders, prevention, nutrient
deficiencies, and general screenings are all major connections between the field of nutrition and
oral health. Through the awareness of each others fields, both dieticians and dentists may be
able to work together to prevent chronic diseases. As of 2013, According to the Academy of
Nutrition and Dietetics, nutrition is an integral part of oral health. They support the integration of
oral health with nutrition services, education, and research. Collaboration between dietetics
practitioners and oral health care professionals is recommended for oral health care promotion
and disease prevention and intervention (1).
Dental caries and periodontal disease are the most prevalent chronic, common, and
transmissible infectious oral conditions in humans (1). Much like obesity and diabetes, the
spread of dental caries and periodontal disease has increased in the last decade. Cases are
becoming more common in children which was not the case years ago. Due to modern food
systems and the amount of added sugar in the foods a person eats; risk for diseases that could
cause harm to your teeth and overall body have increased drastically (1). Some of the dietary
factors that are associated with increased risk of diseases include; sticky foods, sugar-sweetened
liquids, sugary starchy snacks and simple sugars such as honey or molasses (1). All of these

foods are known to cause plaque on the teeth which can lead to decay. Plaque produces acid from
the breakdown of carbohydrates and eventually attacks and wears away the enamel on the teeth
(1). In recent studies, the collaboration of the oral health field and dieticians have worked to
eliminate the number of people with common diseases such as dental caries and periodontal
disease. One of the ways that this can be done is through the enforcement of a healthy daily diet.
A person who eats fruits and vegetables on a daily basis have shown a significantly lower
amount of diseases of the mouth, including ones has serious as Oropharyngeal Cancer (1).
Prevention, including things as simple as semi-annual screenings from both a dietician and
dentist can help in the detection of these diseases. Together as a team, the number of dental caries
and periodontal disease can be drastically decreased. Using the systematic approach to these
diseases is the most effective and modern way to fight off chronic disease and hopefully one day,
it will be the standard norm in all health care facilities.
Sadly, eating disorders are becoming a more prominent issue in the United States. Young
girls often struggle with low self-esteem and self-loathing that is induced by the media. Anorexia
and Bulimia are killers that need to be prevented and stopped in any way possible. The link
between oral health care and the dieticians that take care of people with eating disorders could be
great enough to help put an end to these terrible diseases. If a person with an eating disorder
were to go to a dental office for a general check-up, with the proper education, the dental
hygienist would be able to easily detect the signs that a person has this sickness. Some of the
warning signs include, enamel loss, oral mucosal lesions, peri-oral stomatitis, altered salivary
functions, dental sensitivity, and parotid gland swelling (1). At the first sign of detection, the
dental hygienist would be able to recommend the specialist that the person should go see in order
to get the proper help that he or she needs. Not only do eating disorders lead to the decreased

integrity of the oral cavity, but it also leads to extreme weight loss, nutrient deficiencies, and
overall malnutrition which may result in death (1). If the dental group was able to detect this
problem at the beginning, the proper help may be able to help fix the problem and a life may be
saved.
Just like many oral health problems may be warning signs for nutrition related diseases,
the same thing may happen when the patient is lacking certain nutrients in their body. If a
dietician is able to detect a lack of a certain nutrient in their patients body, they may be able to
tell their dental provider that they are at increased risk for certain oral diseases. This is just
another important reason why
dieticians and oral healthcare
providers should work in tandem.
In Figure 3, common symptoms
are listed on the left and the
nutrient that is missing in the
patients body that may be
causing the problem is listed on
the right. This table is helpful in determining for both professions, what could be wrong with the
patient and how it could be fixed (1). A symptom is not enough to diagnose a patient with a
deficiency though, these theories need to be followed up by an in depth health and diet history
analysis. This is just another of the many reasons why it is important to use a team approach to
preventing and curing diseases.
The elderly population in the United States is expected to be around 20% of the total
population by the year 2030 (1). The elderly is a specialized group when it comes to healthcare

because they often have a lot of restrictions that middle age or younger patients do not. When it
comes to oral health and nutrition, dentures play a major role in treating the patient. Since
dentures can only produce 20-25% of the force of real teeth, it is hard for elderly patients to bite
down on things like apples, or other hard fruits or vegetables. This often leads to lack of key
nutrients in their bodies. It is important that both the dietician and the rest of the team is aware of
any restrictions or difficulties that the patient may have regarding their oral cavity (1). As long as
the dietician is aware that the patient may not be able to eat certain items and that they may have
to be put on a tube feeding schedule, then dealing with the elderly patients should not be a major
problem for the dentists or dieticians.
Dental education, like Dietetics education, is exploring changes needed to focus on
prevention, patient-centered evidence-based care, and inter-professional education, while
keeping pace with advances in technology, genetics and genomics (1). Both of these fields of
science are crucial to the overall health of a human. Nutrition, especially, is a young science that
is being linked to many other fields. With the help of other fields, like oral health, there are many
chronic diseases that may be able to be prevented or stopped completely. The more education
and research that come out of these group programs, the better. After all, no one field can prevent
every disease without the help from other fields. For all of the previously stated reasons, oral
health and nutrition should be seen as fields that benefit one another. Future dieticians
everywhere should recognize the importance of not just their field, but the importance of the
whole healthcare community, to work towards the same goal, to improve the health of the nation
(1).

References
1 - "Position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Oral Health and Nutrition." Journal of
the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 114.6 (2013): 693-701. Feb. 2016.