One hundred and nine patients with diabetes mellitus and 100 age‐, sex‐ and denture‐status‐matched, non‐diabetic individuals were investigated prospectively. Comparison was made of oral candidal carriage, clinical infection and inherited ability to secrete blood group antigens in saliva. Diabetic patients had a significantly higher prevalence of oral candidal carriage and infection (P < 0.001) than non‐diabetic individuals, but the candidal load between the 2 groups, was not significant. A comparable proportion of insulin‐dependent, non‐insulin dependent and control groups were secretors of blood group antigens, and there was no difference in the oral candidal carriage and infection rates between secretors and non‐secretors.

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