Some Youngsters More Likely To Have Tooth Decay
April 29, 2009

by Nancy Volkers
InteliHealth News Service

INTELIHEALTH - An Italian study has found that certain 4-year-olds are more likely to have tooth decay.

The study involved 5,538 children. About 78% of them had no tooth decay. Studies in the United States have found that about 75% of children this age have no decay.

Children with tooth decay were more likely to have:

• Parents who were not Italian
• Parents with a lower education level
• Been born prematurely
• Been breastfed for 13 months or longer
• Gotten their first tooth before 6 months of age

Children with no tooth decay were more likely to have fathers with a high education level.

Many studies have shown that certain groups of young children are more likely than others to have tooth decay.

The study appears in the April issue of the journal Caries Research.