Nutrition and Oral Health in the Elderly

The interrelationship between oral health and general health is particularly pronounced among the elderly. Poor dentition compromises chewing ability and affects nutritional intake. Research has shown that edentulousness is associated with a low dietary quality, especially low fruit and vegetable intake. However, whether this is a direct causal effect remains unclear. Furthermore, the majority of studies did not find that prosthetic interventions alone improve diet quality or nutritional status. The diet is stronger influenced by habits than chewing abilities. The combination of nutrition counseling with dental rehabilitation might improve the quality of the diet. Geriatric patients often suffer from dry mouth and are dentally underserved. They are vulnerable for malnutrition and there is an independent association between oral health status and malnutrition. However, as malnutrition is a complex and multi-factorial problem, there is no isolated solution by dental medicine or nutrition therapy alone. Oral health has often been seen in isolation from the rest of the body or from general health. Health professionals and the elderly need to be sensibilized for the interrelationship between oral health and be aware of the preventive actions. In geriatric patients the problem should be identified early, and an integrated approach and interprofessional collaboration is required for adequate therapy.