TUESDAY, March 10, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Poor childhood oral health is associated with an increased risk for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in adulthood, according to a study published in the April 1 issue of the International Journal of Cardiology.
Nikoline Nygaard, Ph.D., from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, and colleagues examined the association between dental caries and gingivitis in childhood with the incidence of ASCVD in adulthood in a nationwide Danish cohort study involving 568,778 individuals born between 1963 and 1972.
The researchers found that in both men and women, severe childhood dental caries were associated with increased ASCVD incidence (hazard ratios, 1.32 and 1.45, respectively). Elevated ASCVD risk was predicted by high gingivitis scores (hazard ratios, 1.21 and 1.31 for men and women, respectively). Significant associations were seen for disease trajectories with moderate- to severe-level oral disease and oral health deterioration with higher ASCVD incidence.
"We suspect that exposure to high levels of inflammation in the form of gum disease and dental caries already in childhood may influence how the body later responds to inflammation," Nygaard said in a statement. "We cannot rule out that lifestyle plays an important role. But even after adjusting for educational level, the incidence of cardiovascular disease is still quite marked."