Is the oral health reform in Israel optimally distributed? - A commentary

Autor: Avraham Zini, Guy Tobias, Harold D. Sgan-Cohen
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2019
Předmět:
Dietary Fiber
Male
Oral Health
Health administration
0302 clinical medicine
Health care
Activities of Daily Living
Vegetables
030212 general & internal medicine
Israel
Aged
80 and over
education.field_of_study
lcsh:R5-920
030503 health policy & services
lcsh:Public aspects of medicine
Health services research
Health policy
Female
Dental health care
Dietary Proteins
0305 other medical science
lcsh:Medicine (General)
medicine.medical_specialty
Population
Statistics
Nonparametric
Alma Ata Declaration
03 medical and health sciences
Political science
medicine
Humans
Dental public health
education
Aged
Chi-Square Distribution
business.industry
Public health
Public Health
Environmental and Occupational Health
lcsh:RA1-1270
Feeding Behavior
Cross-Sectional Studies
Geriatrics
Family medicine
Fruit
Commentary
National health insurance law
business
Energy Intake
Zdroj: Israel Journal of Health Policy Research, Vol 8, Iss 1, Pp 1-3 (2019)
Israel Journal of Health Policy Research
ISSN: 2045-4015
DOI: 10.1186/s13584-019-0302-z
Popis: Epidemiological studies have shown deterioration in dental health accompanying the ageing process. Tooth loss increases with age. Chewing ability is closely correlated with number of natural teeth present: there is a threshold of 20-21 teeth, below which chewing ability declines. The government of Israel is currently considering adding dental treatment for elderly to the basket of services of the National Health Insurance Law. Information on the influence of elderly's dental health on nutrition and general health status can contribute to the decision making process.Secondary analysis of data collected on a subsample (N = 1776) of the cross-sectional Mabat Zahav - National Health and Nutrition Survey of the Elderly was done. Intakes of energy, fiber, protein, fruits and vegetables, associations with dental visits, dentures presence and functional ability were analyzed. Linear regression adjusted for confounders was performed.Statistically significant differences in dietary intake of energy, fiber, protein and vegetables were found between elderly who visited a dentist in the last year and those who did not. Elderly who possessed dentures had lower dietary intakes than their dentate counterparts. Elderly with functional problems such as impaired chewing had worse dietary intakes than the others. This was so after controlling for education, degree of interest in the relationship between nutrition and health and reading the nutrition label.The findings in our study suggest that those who visited a dentist in the last year, had natural teeth and no denture/s and reported no chewing problems had better dietary intake. The results emphasize the importance of maintaining adequate dental health, preserving natural teeth and regular dental visits in the elderly to assure adequate nutrient status in this age group.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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