The Effects of Tooth Brushing on Whole Salivary Flow Rate in Older Adults.

OBJECTIVES: (1) To determine whether manual (MTB), or electric, tooth brushing (ETB) modulates whole salivary flow rate in older adults who are free of systemic disease. (2) To determine the duration of the brushing-related modulation of salivary flow rate. (3) To compare salivary flow rate modulation associated with MTB and ETB. METHOD: Twenty-one adults aged 60 years and older participated in two experimental sessions during which they used a manual, or electric, toothbrush to brush their teeth, tongue, and palate. Whole salivary flow rates were determined using the draining method before, during, and after brushing. Differences in salivary flow rates across time periods, and between conditions, were examined using paired samples t-tests applying a Holm-Bonferroni sequential procedure (pcorr < 0.0045). The relationship between tooth brushing and age with respect to maximum salivary flow rate increase was examined using Pearson's correlation coefficient (p < 0.05). RESULTS/CONCLUSION: Whole salivary flow rates increased during, and for up to 5 minutes following, tooth brushing in adults aged 60 years and older who were free of systemic disease. The salivary effects of MTB and ETB were not significantly different. A moderate, positive correlation was observed between tooth-brushing-related maximum salivary flow rate increase and age.

Weight-related other evaluation in eating disorders.

Weight-related self-evaluation has been described as the fundamental maladaptive cognitive feature of disordered eating. It is not clear, however, whether the process of determining personal-worth based on an evaluation of body size is specific to the self, or whether it is relevant to the evaluation of people in general. Thirty-three eating disordered patients and 54 undergraduates read an article about a woman who was described as either overweight or slender and evaluated the woman on several dimensions. Both undergraduates and eating disordered patients rated the heavy woman as less attractive than the thin woman. However, the patients' evaluation of the overweight target's attractiveness was significantly more negative than the undergraduates'. Patients also rated the overweight woman as less popular and claimed that they liked the overweight woman less than the thin woman. These effects were not present among the undergraduate students. Finally, the eating disorder participants rated the overweight woman as more overweight and less intelligent than did the undergraduate students. The results suggest that weight-related evaluation in eating disorders extends beyond the self to include the evaluation of other people.