Chronic oral disease burden at the first 1000 days: Intergenerational risk factors, BRISA cohort.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze multiple-causal models, including socioeconomic, obesity, sugar consumption, alcohol smoking, caries, and periodontitis variables in pregnant women with early sugar exposure, obesity, and the Chronic Oral Disease Burden in their offspring around the first 1000 days of life. METHODS: The BRISA cohort study, Brazil, had two assessments: at the 22nd-25th gestational weeks and during the child's second year (n = 1141). We proposed a theoretical model exploring the association between socioeconomic and pregnancy factors (age, smoking, alcohol, sugars, obesity, periodontitis, and caries) and child's variables (sugars and overweight) with the outcome, Chronic Oral Disease Burden (latent variable deduced from visible plaque, gingivitis, and tooth decay), using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: Caries and periodontitis were correlated in pregnant women. Addictive behaviors in the gestational period were correlated. Obesity (Standardized coefficient - SC = 0.081; p = 0.047) and added sugar consumption (SC = 0.142; p = 0.041) were observed intergenerationally in the pregnant woman-child dyads. Sugar consumption by the children (SC = 0.210; p = 0.041) increased the Chronic Oral Disease Burden. CONCLUSIONS: Poor caries and periodontal indicators were correlated in pregnant women and their offspring. Obesity and sugar consumption act intergenerationally. Oral health in early life may change life trajectory since the worst oral conditions predict main NCDs.

Pathways in the association between added sugar consumption, obesity in mother-child dyads, and chronic oral disease burden in early childhood.

In this study, we modeled the pathways in the association of socioeconomic status, frequency of added sugar consumption, and obesity in mother-child dyads with chronic oral disease burden in early childhood using structural equation modeling. A population-based study was conducted on preschoolers from public daycare centers in São Luís, Brazil (n = 674) and their mothers. Chronic oral disease burden in early childhood was a latent variable, representing the shared variance of the following indicators: visible plaque index, gingivitis, and dental caries. A higher consumption frequency of added sugars by children [standardized regression coefficient (SC) = 0.219] explained the chronic oral disease burden. A higher consumption frequency of added sugars by mothers was associated with greater consumption of sugar by children (SC = 0.236), and indirectly with a greater chronic oral disease burden (SC = 0.052). Maternal obesity was associated with obesity in the offspring (SC = 0.130). The chronic oral disease burden is already present in early childhood and can be explained by the higher consumption of added sugars by the mother-child dyad. Approaches to preventing chronic oral diseases should focus on common risk factors, start early in life, and promote family involvement in this process.