| Summary: | BACKGROUND: Periodontal disease is a major chronic disease worldwide and one of the most prevalent oral pathologies. Some factors that may lead to periodontal disease include poor nutrition, chronic illness, poor lifestyle choices, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption. Previous studies have also revealed a biological link between diabetes or obesity and periodontal health status. Because physical activity can reduce the risk of diabetes and obesity, it would follow that physical activity may also lead to improved periodontal health. However, to date, there has been limited research on the effects of physical activity on periodontal disease risk. Our investigation answers the following question: Do people who are more physically active have better periodontal health than those who are inactive?
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of our research initiative was to evaluate the prevalence of periodontal disease among people who are physically inactive versus those who are physically active using data from NHANES.
METHODS: In this study, we utilized the publicly available NHANES 2011-2012 datasets of 9756 observations before exclusions. Our study included individuals (30-80 years of age) consisting of 49.4% male and 50.6% female who provided demographic data, periodontal and dentition examination data, and self-reported smoking and physical activity data (Table 3). There were a total of 3327 observations meeting our inclusion criteria. Weighted prevalence estimates and odds ratios (OR) were calculated for physical activity adjusted by age, gender, race, education level, and economic status. Physical activity was categorized by domains of transportation physical activity, occupation physical activity, leisure time physical activity, and sedentary behavior. Physical activity was also categorized into a dichotomous total amount of physical activity by adding the three major physical activity domains.
RESULTS: We observed higher rates of periodontal disease in men, in older adults, smokers, and individuals with diabetes mellitus. We also observed that individuals with higher total physical activity and leisure time physical activity and lower amount of total sedentary activity had lower periodontal disease rates. After adjusting for confounders, lower sedentary time was associated with lower periodontal disease rates (OR 1.18; 95% CI (Confidence Interval) 1.01,1.38; p=0.0416), but total physical activity and leisure time was not significantly associated with periodontal disease (OR 1.00; 95% CI 0.79,1.28; p=0.98) (OR 1.14; 95% CI 0.81,1.61; p=0.42) (Table 5).
CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate sedentary time is associated with higher rates of periodontal disease. Future prospective longitudinal studies and strategies are needed to investigate implications further and define the magnitude of the association between physical activity and periodontal disease.
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