Citation

Kim YS, Kim HN, Lee JH, Kim SY, Jun EJ, Kim JB. BMC Oral Health 2017; 17(1): e101.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group - BMC)

DOI

10.1186/s12903-017-0391-4

PMID

28645271

PMCID

PMC5481876

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Oral health greatly affects well-being throughout the different stages of life from childhood to late adulthood. Loss of teeth due to poor oral health hinders mastication, leading to poor nutrition absorption, and affects pronunciation and aesthetics, leading to interpersonal difficulties. As social activities become limited, a sense of isolation and loneliness, stress, and depression grows while happiness decreases. This study aimed to examine the association of stress, depression, and suicidal ideation with oral health status and oral functions in a large nationwide sample of Korean adults aged 35 years or more.
METHODS: The sample comprised 15,716 adults, selected using a rolling survey sampling method and data were extracted from the Fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) (2010-2012). Participants were interviewed about their self-evaluation of health including oral health status and mental health, such as stress, depression, and suicidal ideation. Data from 11,347 adults were finally selected after excluding participants with missing answers. The dependent variables were stress, depression, and suicidal ideation. The independent variables were gender, age, household income, education, smoking, drinking, oral health perception, chewing, and speaking. Complex samples logistic regression analyses were used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
RESULTS: Participants met the criteria for stress (25.4%), depression (13.0%), and suicidal ideation (13.9%). Subjective oral health status was not significantly associated with stress, depression, and suicidal ideation. However, the presence of very uncomfortable chewing problems was significantly associated with stress (OR = 2.294, 95% CI = 1.41, 3.72), depression (OR = 3.232, 95% CI = 1.97, 5.31), and suicidal ideation (OR = 2.727, 95% CI = 1.58, 4.72). The presence of very uncomfortable speaking problems was significantly associated with stress (OR = 1.592, 95% CI = 1.13, 2.24) but not significantly associated with depression and suicidal ideation.
CONCLUSIONS: Oral functional problems including chewing and speaking difficulties can be associated with mental health. It is necessary to develop oral health promotion programs for adults and help them maintain a good quality of life and mental health.

Language: en

Keywords

Humans; Adult; Aged; Female; Male; Middle Aged; Health Status; Stress; Depression; Suicidal Ideation; Suicidal ideation; Republic of Korea; Stress, Psychological; Oral Health; Oral function; Subjective oral health status