On the occasion of the celebration of the World Day for a Future Free of Cavities, the Collegiate Organization recalls that caries can be prevented. “Appropriate self-care - brushing your teeth at least twice a day with fluoridated toothpaste and using dental floss or an interdental brush daily - as well as regular check-ups at the dentist combined with a healthy lifestyle, avoiding excessive consumption of sugars, and tobacco and alcohol, allow maintaining a functional dentition throughout life”, explains the president of the General Council of Dentists, Dr. Óscar Castro Reino.

Multiple factors are involved in the appearance of caries. Some belong to the oral environment, such as living microorganisms or bacteria found in the body, resistance to demineralization or the morphology itself. Other factors are matched to the individual: number of visits to the dentist, appropriate fluoride intake, and diet. Third, there are influences at the family level: cultural level, socioeconomic level, level of health awareness, etc. Finally, the fourth group of factors falls on the community sphere: characteristics of the health system, organization of oral care and degree of protection, among others.

In Spain there are 35 million people with cavities

In terms of prevalence, caries occupies the first position in our country with respect to other common diseases with 35 million people affected, followed by periodontal disease (9 million), diabetes (5.5 million) and asthma (2. 5 million).

By age groups, 35% of children under 6 years of age have caries, which represents some 850,000 affected children who accumulate nearly 4 million temporary teeth with caries.

In the group of adolescents (11-17 years old), between 30-35% have caries, which represents 1.3 million young people with 2.4 million affected permanent teeth. Of these, 30% have not received treatment.

94% of young adults (35-44 years) in Spain have caries, that is, about 11 million affected subjects. Each young adult has, on average, 7 teeth affected by caries. Of these, 40% are untreated.

As for the elderly (65-74 years), the entire population has suffered from caries at some point in their lives. It represents an affectation of 6.4 million people, each of them with an average of 15 affected teeth. Only 2 out of 10 teeth have received their dental treatment. 7% of older adults are totally edentulous.