Associations between self-reported periodontal disease and nutrient intakes and nutrient-based dietary patterns in the UK Biobank

Aim To examine the cross-sectional associations between single nutrient intakes and posteriori nutrient-based dietary patterns and periodontal disease risk in a subset of the UK Biobank cohort. Materials and Methods Dietary data were collected by 24-h dietary recall on up to five separate occasions over 16 months. A touchscreen questionnaire was used to collect oral health information. Participants were considered at high risk of periodontal disease if they reported having painful gums and/or bleeding gums and/or loose teeth. Principal component analysis identified four nutrient-based dietary patterns from 20 nutrients. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio of periodontal disease risk for single nutrients and nutrient-based dietary patterns. Results A total of 9476 participants (mean age 56.2 years [SD 8.0]) were included in the analysis. Higher intakes of vitamin B6, B12, C, and E, folate, iron, potassium, magnesium, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and total sugar were associated with a lower risk of periodontal disease. Higher intake of saturated fat was associated with an increased risk. A dietary pattern characterized by high micronutrients and fibre intake was associated with low risk of periodontal disease. Conclusion Within this sample of middle-aged and older adults, a "high micronutrient and fibre" dietary pattern was associated with reduced risk of periodontal disease.