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 Dec 18;24(1):1497.
doi: 10.1186/s12903-024-05290-7.

Parental health belief model constructs associated with oral health behaviors, dental caries, and quality of life among preschool children in China: a cross-sectional study

Shu-Mei Liu  1 , Yu-Meng Xin  1 , Feng Wang  2 , Pei-Chao Lin  3   4   5 , Hsiao-Ling Huang  6   7
Affiliations

Parental health belief model constructs associated with oral health behaviors, dental caries, and quality of life among preschool children in China: a cross-sectional study

Shu-Mei Liu et al. BMC Oral Health. .

Abstract

Background: Early childhood caries (ECC) is a prevalent health problem that negatively affects both overall health and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). This study investigated the association between health belief model (HBM) constructs and oral health behaviors, dental caries, and OHRQoL in preschool children in China.

Methods: A total of 1562 preschool children aged 3 to 6 years were recruited from six public kindergartens in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, by using stratified cluster sampling. A questionnaire was administered to parents to collect information on demographics, HBM constructs, oral health behaviors, dental caries, and OHRQoL. Regression models were used to examine relationships between HBM constructs and the outcomes.

Results: Parental perceived benefits [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.47 and 1.42], perceived barriers (AOR = 0.65 and 0.63), and oral health self-efficacy (AOR = 20.59 and 19.09) were associated with brushing teeth twice daily and brushing teeth with parental assistance. Perceived susceptibility (AOR = 6.62) and perceived severity (AOR = 0.49) were significantly associated with children's ECC. Poorer oral health (β = 0.09), higher perceived susceptibility (β = 0.11), and greater perceived barriers (β = 0.30) were associated with lower OHRQoL. Brushing teeth twice daily (β = -0.19) and brushing teeth with parental assistance (β = -0.09) were associated with higher OHRQoL.

Conclusions: Parental HBM constructs were significantly associated with oral health behaviors, ECC, and OHRQoL in preschool children. These findings indicate the importance of incorporating parental HBM constructs into health education programs to promote positive oral health behaviors, reduce the prevalence of caries, and enhance OHRQoL in preschoolers.

Trial registration: Not applicable.

Keywords: Early childhood caries; Health belief model; Oral health behaviors; Oral health related-quality of life; Preschool children.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The research protocol was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Jing Hengyi College of Education at Hangzhou Normal University Institutional Review Board (IRB No. 2022013). Participants were deemed to have agreed and provided consent to participate in the survey when they successfully completed and submitted the online questionnaire. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

References

    1. Uribe SE, Innes N, Maldupa I. The global prevalence of early childhood caries: a systematic review with meta-analysis using the WHO diagnostic criteria. Int J Paediatr Dent. 2021;31(6):817–30. 10.1111/ipd.12783. - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization. Global oral health status report: towards universal health coverage for oral health by 2030. Regional summary of the African Region. [Online]. Available: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240061484 [access 2024-08-26].
    1. Du MQ, Li Z, Jiang H, Wang X, Feng XP, Hu DY, Lin HC, Wang B, Si Y, Wang CZ, Zheng SG, Liu XN, Rong WS, Wang WJ, Tai BJ. Dental caries status and its associated factors among 3-to 5-year-old children in China: a national survey. Chin J Dent Res. 2018;21(3):167–79. 10.3290/j.cjdr.a41076. - PubMed
    1. Wang X. The fourth national oral health epidemiological investigation report. Beijing: People’s Medical Publishing House; 2018. [in Chinese].
    1. Zaror C, Matamala-Santander A, Ferrer M, Rivera-Mendoza F, Espinoza-Espinoza G, Martinez-Zapata MJ. Impact of early childhood caries on oral health-related quality of life: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Dent Hyg. 2022;20(1):120–35. 10.1111/idh.12494. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources