Parents were asked to rate the condition of their children’s teeth as excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor. Overall, the parents of 68.5 percent of children report that their children’s teeth are in excellent or very good condition.

This proportion varies with children’s age. The parents of 77.7 percent of 1- to 5-year-olds rate the condition of their children’s teeth as excellent or very good, compared to 61.8 percent of children aged 6-11 and 67.5 percent of adolescents aged 12-17.

The condition of children’s teeth varies by children’s race and ethnicity as well. Just over three-quarters (76.4 percent) of White children have teeth that are in excellent or very good condition, as reported by their parents, as do 69.9 percent of multiracial children. The parents of Black and Hispanic children are less likely to report that their children’s teeth are in excellent or very good condition: 61.1 percent of Black children and only 46.7 percent of Hispanic children have teeth that are in excellent or very good condition, as do 67.2 percent of children of other races.

The condition of children’s teeth also varies with family income. Of children with family incomes below the Federal poverty level (FPL), fewer than half (48.8 percent) were reported to have teeth that were in excellent or very good condition, compared to 60.2 percent of children with family incomes between 100 and 199 percent of the FPL, 75 percent of children with family incomes between 200 and 399 percent of the FPL, and 82.8 percent of children with family incomes of 400 percent or more of the FPL.

The use of preventive dental care also appears to be associated with the condition of children’s teeth. Of children who went to a dentist at least once in the past year for preventive care, 70.3 percent had teeth in excellent or very good condition, compared to 64.0 percent of children who did not receive preventive care in the past year.

Children’s dental health is closely related to their physical health. For example, 64.9 percent of children with special health care needs (defined as those who have a chronic physical, developmental, behavioral or emotional condition and who also require health and related services of a type or amount beyond that required by children generally¹), were reported to have teeth in excellent or very good condition, compared to 69.3 percent of children without special health care needs.

Of children whose overall physical health was described as excellent or very good, 74.4 percent had excellent or very good dental health. In contrast, of children whose overall health was rated as good, fair, or poor, only 38.0 percent had teeth in excellent or very good condition.

Children whose teeth are in excellent or very good condition are less likely than other children to miss more than 2 weeks of school due to illness or injury. Of children who missed 11 days or more of school in the past year, 56.6 percent were reported to have teeth in excellent or very good condition, compared to 65.4 percent of children who missed 10 days of school or fewer.

1 McPherson M, Arango P, Fox H, Lauver C, McManus M, Newacheck P, Perrin J, Shonkoff J, Strickland B. A new definition of children with special health care needs. Pediatrics 998;102(1): 137-140.

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