Not only is smoking bad for your physical and oral health, but a University of Rochester study from 2001 found that children exposed to secondhand smoke are more likely to develop cavities. As if you needed another reason to give up smoking.
Researchers looked at federal health data on nearly 4,000 children, aged 4-11. Researchers assessed smoking exposure by measuring the blood for cotinine, a by-product of nicotine. The rate of cavities in children was nearly double in smoking households.
“What I think is the most powerful potential mechanism is smoking during pregnancy, because it causes low birth weight, and prematurity, and poor growth, including problems with tooth formation,” said researcher C. Andrew Aligne, MD, assistant professor of general pediatrics at the University of Rochester (N.Y.) School of Medicine..
Dental Cavity Statistics
- 42% of children 2 to 11 have had dental caries in their primary teeth
- 21% of children 6 to 11 have had dental caries in their permanent teeth
- Over 19% of children ages 2-19 have untreated cavities
- Children 2 to 11 have an average of 1.6 decayed primary teeth and 3.6 decayed primary surfaces
- Children 6 to 11 have about 0.45 decayed permanent teeth and 0.68 decayed permanent surfaces
- Children lose 50million hours of school annually because of bad teeth
“For parents, it’s not a good idea to smoke around your kid. This is potentially just one more reason on top of all the other good reasons [to quit smoking],” said Aligne.
If you have any questions about Secondhand Smoke and Cavities, please contact Affinity Dental Associates by calling 410-719-7900 or visit MarylandsBestDentists.com today!
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