Toothbrushing in relation to other health habits in Finland

Abstract

The dimensionality of health behavior is disputable. In the present study an effort was made to shed more light on this problem. Interview data were obtained from 3209 13--19-year-old Finnish adolescents concerning the subjects' smoking habits, use of alcohol, physical activity, toothbrushing and dietary habits. A clear positive relationship was observed between toothbrushing and the use of sugar-containing snacks. Use of alcohol seemed to have slight adverse effect on toothbrushing. Smoking was also weakly related with sporadic toothbrushing. Sports-oriented girls seemed to be regular toothbrushers. It was concluded that the possible comprehensive nature of health behavior should be more appreciated.

Effect of lifestyle, education and socioeconomic status on periodontal health

“…This is in accordance with Rajala[2] who had shown a positive association between dental health behavior and lifestyle variables.…”

“…[2] Of late the concept of improved lifestyle is gaining tremendous importance with reference to maintenance of periodontal health. Presently very few studies exist showing the effect of general education, lifestyle, and socioeconomic position on the prevalence of periodontal disease.…”

Toothbrushing and smoking among adolescents - aggregation of health damaging behaviours

“…Adolescents who smoked daily also brushed their teeth less frequently than the adolescents who did not smoke, confirming the finding of Rajala et al (1980). However, while 30 years ago the association was only weak, these two health damaging habits were strongly associated with each other in the present survey.…”

Association Between Alcohol Consumption and Periodontal Disease: The 2008 to 2010 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

“…Similarly, periodontal diseases appeared to be caused primarily by bad oral hygiene and poor dental care in heavy drinkers 29 . A negative association between the number of times of toothbrushing and alcohol intake has been reported in Finland 30 . That study showed that periodontal treatment needs had a statistically significant relationship between the number of times of toothbrushing per day and self‐reported oral status.…”