(By Dr. Joseph D. Lim and Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI)
MANY of the elderly lose their teeth faster because of loneliness and isolation. That is, when compared to elders who are more socially active.
This is the conclusion of a study conducted by researchers at New York University (NYU) Rory Meyers College of Nursing. The study, which involved older Chinese adults, is published in the Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology journal.
The study’s findings are important because they can lead to the development of interventions that reduce social isolation.
Social isolation is defined as having few social relationships or few social contacts. Loneliness, on the other hand, is the feeling when people lack social connection.
“While social isolation and loneliness often go hand in hand, it’s possible to live alone and be socially isolated but to not feel lonely, or to be surrounded by people but still feel lonely,” says Dr. Bei Wu, Dean’s Professor in Global Health at NYU Meyers and the study’s senior author.
“Our study suggests that maintaining and improving social connections may benefit the oral health of older adults,” said Xiang Qi, a PhD student at NYU Meyers and the study’s first author. Previous studies have found “social disconnection can have powerful effects on indicators of health and well-being,” he points out.
Loneliness have been linked before to health issues such as heart disease, mental health disorders, cognitive decline, and premature death.
zn China, the elderly aged 65 to 74 had fewer than 23 teeth on average; 4.5 percent in this age group are edentulous or without any teeth at all. On average, adults have 32 teeth, or 28 without the wisdom teeth.
The condition is exacerbated by smoking, inadequate oral health care, aggravating illnesses such as heart disease and gum disease, and smoking. Missing or having no teeth is bad news to the elderly as the conditions affect nutrition, speech, self-esteem and overall quality of life.
With the COVID pandemic, person-to-person socializations have been drastically reduced. This is more so with the elderly who, because of age, are considered more at risk of getting infected with the COVID virus.
The World Health Organization says that in many countries such as China and the United States a third of the elderly are lonely.
The researchers based their study on the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey to understand better the link between social isolation, loneliness, and tooth loss in the elderly. The researchers analyzed data from 4,268 adults aged 65 and over.
Study participants completed surveys in 2011-12, 2014, and 2018. The surveys measured social isolation and loneliness, how many teeth people had and how many they have lost over the seven-year study.
More than one in four or 27.5 percent of the study participants were socially isolated; 26.5 percent said they were lonely.
Higher levels of social isolation were associated with having fewer teeth. This was true as well with losing teeth more quickly over time, even when oral hygiene, health status, smoking and drinking, and loneliness were considered.
The study found that the socially isolated elderly had 2.1 fewer natural teeth on average. The rate at which they lost their teeth were also and 1.4 times compared with those who were socially active.
“Socially isolated older adults tend to be less engaged in social and health-promoting behaviors like physical activity, which could have a negative impact on their overall functioning and oral hygiene, as well as increase their risk for systemic inflammation,” said Dr. Wu.
“This functional impairment seems to be a major pathway linking social isolation to tooth loss. Surprisingly, loneliness was not associated with the number of remaining teeth, nor with the rate of tooth loss.”
According to Mr. Qi, social isolation can result in a lack of support that can affect health behaviors for older adults who feel lonely. “It’s possible that their social networks are still in place and can help them to keep up healthy behaviors.”
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the former Associate Dean of the College of Dentistry, University of the East; former Dean, College of Dentistry, National University; Past President and Honorary Fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy; Honorary Fellow of the Japan College of Oral Implantologists; and Honorary Life Member of the Thai Association of Dental Implantology. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515.
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Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI, graduated Doctor of Dental Medicine, University of the Philippines College of Dentistry, Manila, 2011; Bachelor of Science in Marketing Management, De la Salle University, Manila, 2002; and Master of Science (MSc.) in Oral Implantology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany, 2019. He is an Associate professor; Fellow, International Congress of Oral Implantologists; Member, American Academy of Implant Dentistry and Philippine College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail limdentalcenter@gmail.com/PN
