Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Nov 26;27(1):e263.
doi: 10.1017/S1368980024002398.

Starch intake and caries increment: A longitudinal study in Finnish adults

Fariah H Jangda  1 , Annaliisa L Suominen  2   3   4 , Annamari Lundqvist  4 , Satu Männistö  4 , Ali Golkari  1 , Eduardo Bernabé  1
Affiliations

Starch intake and caries increment: A longitudinal study in Finnish adults

Fariah H Jangda et al. Public Health Nutr. .

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate whether changes in starch intake (in terms of amount and food sources) were associated with increments in dental caries among adults.

Design: This is an 11-year longitudinal study (2000-2011) with duplicate assessments for all variables. A 128-item FFQ was used to estimate intake of starch (g/d) and six starch-rich food groups (potatoes, potato products, roots and tubers, pasta, wholegrains and legumes). Dental caries was assessed through clinical examinations and summarised using the number of decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT score). The relationship between quintiles of starch intake and DMFT score was tested in linear hybrid models adjusting for confounders.

Setting: Northern and Southern regions of Finland.

Participants: 922 adults, aged 30-88 years.

Results: Mean starch intake was 127·6 (sd: 47·8) g/d at baseline and 120·7 (55·8) g/d at follow-up. Mean DMFT score was 21·7 (6·4) and 22·4 (6·2) at baseline and follow-up. Starch intake was inversely associated with DMFT score cross-sectionally (rate ratio for highest v. lowest quintile of intake: -2·73, 95 % CI -4·64, -0·82) but not longitudinally (0·32, 95 % CI -0·12, 0·76). By food sources, the intakes of pasta (-2·77, 95 % CI -4·21, -1·32) and wholegrains (-1·91, 95 % CI -3·38, -0·45) were negatively associated with DMFT score cross-sectionally but not longitudinally (0·03, 95 % CI -0·33, 0·39 and -0·10, 95 % CI -0·44, 0·24, respectively).

Conclusion: Changes in the amount and sources of starch intake were not associated with changes in dental caries. Further studies should be conducted in different settings and age groups while focusing on starch digestibility and specific sources of starch.

Keywords: Adult; Carbohydrates; Dental caries; Finland; Longitudinal study; Starch.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

All authors declare they have no conflict of interest in relation to this manuscript.

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Selection of the study sample from adults participating in the Health 2000 and Health 2011 surveys.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Moores CJ, Kelly SAM & Moynihan PJ (2022) Systematic review of the effect on caries of sugars intake: ten-year update. J Dent Res 101, 1034–1045. - PubMed
    1. Alosaimi N & Bernabe E (2022) Amount and frequency of added sugars intake and their associations with dental caries in United States adults. Int J Environ Res Public Health 19, 4511. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lingstrom P, van Houte J & Kashket S (2000) Food starches and dental caries. Crit Rev Oral Biol Med 11, 366–380. - PubMed
    1. Atkinson FS, Khan JH, Brand-Miller JC et al. (2021) The impact of carbohydrate quality on dental plaque pH: does the glycemic index of starchy foods matter for dental health?. Nutrients 13, 2711. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hancock S, Zinn C & Schofield G (2020) The consumption of processed sugar- and starch-containing foods, and dental caries: a systematic review. Eur J Oral Sci 128, 467–475. - PubMed