Dietary inflammatory potential and oral-periodontal health in children: a cross-sectional study based on the children's dietary inflammatory index dietary inflammatory potential and oral-periodontal health in children.

OBJECTIVES

Diet-related inflammatory processes have been implicated in the development of oral and periodontal diseases; however, data in pediatric populations remain limited. The Children's Dietary Inflammatory Index (C-DII) is a validated tool designed to assess the inflammatory potential of diet in children. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the association between dietary inflammatory potential and oral-periodontal health parameters in children.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

A total of 300 systemically healthy children aged 6-14 years were included. Sociodemographic characteristics and oral hygiene habits were recorded. Clinical examinations assessed DMFT/dmft, Plaque Index (PI), Gingival Index (GI), and Bleeding on Probing (BOP). Dietary intake was evaluated using three-day dietary records, and C-DII scores were calculated after energy standardization per 1000 kcal. Statistical analyses were performed using Jamovi (version 2.3.28), with significance set at p < 0.05.

RESULTS

C-DII scores showed a significant negative correlation with DMFT (p = 0.035) and a positive correlation with PI (p = 0.030). Quartile comparisons demonstrated significant differences in PI (p = 0.007), GI (p = 0.02), and BOP (p = 0.034) among children aged 6-10 years. In the 11-14-year group, GI (p = 0.002) and BOP (p = 0.01) values differed significantly across C-DII quartiles.

CONCLUSIONS

Higher dietary inflammatory potential was associated with less favorable periodontal parameters in children. These findings suggest that proinflammatory dietary patterns may be linked to early periodontal changes.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Assessment of dietary inflammatory potential may help identify children at increased periodontal risk and support preventive nutritional strategies in pediatric dental care.