Final published version
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Water fluoridation, dentition status and bone health of older people in Ireland
AU - O'Sullivan, Vincent
AU - O'Connell, Brian
PY - 2015/2
Y1 - 2015/2
N2 - ObjectiveTo examine some of the potential benefits and risks of water fluoridation for older adults.MethodsThis study used ‘The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing’, to access a nationally representative sample of 4977 people aged 50 and older. The sample was used to estimate associations between the percentage of households in a respondent's local area with a currently fluoridated water supply and the probability of two binary outcomes: the respondent having all their own teeth and having normal bone density. Past exposure of individuals to fluoridated water was not assessed; the prevalence of fluoridated water in local supplies was obtained from the 2006 Census of Ireland. The Census data indicated that there was considerable variation in the proportion of households with fluoridated water supplies, especially in rural areas. Bone mineral density was estimated from a heel ultrasound of each respondent, and their number of teeth was self-reported. A range of individual variables, such as educational attainment, housing wealth, age and health behaviours, was controlled for.ResultsIt was found that the greater the percentage of households with a fluoridated water supply in an area, the higher the probability that respondents had all their own teeth. There was no significant relationship between the proportion of households with a fluoridated water supply in an area and bone health.ConclusionThis study suggests that water fluoridation provides a net health gain for older Irish adults, though the effects of fluoridation warrant further investigation.
AB - ObjectiveTo examine some of the potential benefits and risks of water fluoridation for older adults.MethodsThis study used ‘The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing’, to access a nationally representative sample of 4977 people aged 50 and older. The sample was used to estimate associations between the percentage of households in a respondent's local area with a currently fluoridated water supply and the probability of two binary outcomes: the respondent having all their own teeth and having normal bone density. Past exposure of individuals to fluoridated water was not assessed; the prevalence of fluoridated water in local supplies was obtained from the 2006 Census of Ireland. The Census data indicated that there was considerable variation in the proportion of households with fluoridated water supplies, especially in rural areas. Bone mineral density was estimated from a heel ultrasound of each respondent, and their number of teeth was self-reported. A range of individual variables, such as educational attainment, housing wealth, age and health behaviours, was controlled for.ResultsIt was found that the greater the percentage of households with a fluoridated water supply in an area, the higher the probability that respondents had all their own teeth. There was no significant relationship between the proportion of households with a fluoridated water supply in an area and bone health.ConclusionThis study suggests that water fluoridation provides a net health gain for older Irish adults, though the effects of fluoridation warrant further investigation.
KW - ageing
KW - dental caries
KW - osteoporosis
KW - water fluoridation
U2 - 10.1111/cdoe.12130
DO - 10.1111/cdoe.12130
M3 - Journal article
VL - 43
SP - 58
EP - 67
JO - Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology
JF - Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology
SN - 1600-0528
IS - 1
ER -