Repercussions of the Covid-19 pandemic on food, lifestyle, and oral health care in a Brazilian pediatric population

Abstract

Objective: to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during the stricter isolation (lockdown) on eating habits, lifestyle, and oral hygiene of children treated at the Pediatric Dentistry clinic of the Dentistry course at the Federal University of Ceará. Methods: a cross-sectional observational study was carried out, in which 50 parents and/or legal guardians of children aged 3-9 years were interviewed. The applied questionnaire consisting of 56 questions included the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Quality Index of the Mediterranean Diet in Children and Adolescents (KIDMED). Data were tabulated in Microsoft Excel® and exported to SPSS version 20.0 software. After categorization, analyzes were performed using Pearson's Chi-square or Fisher's exact tests (p<0.05) and expressed as absolute and percentage frequencies. Results: children showed a high percentage of consumption of fermented sugars (37; 74.0%), a sedentary lifestyle (36; 72.0%), and adequate care with oral hygiene, including the use of fluoride toothpaste (49; 98.9%), and night brushing (41; 82.0%) during the lockdown. Furthermore, a statistically significant maintenance/increase in the variation in the number of meals was observed for children who increased their intake of sugary foods (p=0.003) and became sedentary (p=0.022). Conclusions: despite the sugary diet during the lockdown, control of the risk of caries is suggested since most children maintained good oral hygiene habits. However, such eating habits combined with a sedentary lifestyle expose the individual to the risk of important systemic conditions, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes.