Dental caries and diet in an Alaskan Eskimo population

abstract – The diet and the prevalence of dental caries in a group of Alaskan inland Eskimos have been studied on two occasions. Considerable changes in living habits had occurred during the 8–10 intervening years. A marked change in diet was noted. The percentage of total calories obtained from protein had decreased by about 50 % and that from carbohydrate increased by nearly 50 %. The change in diet was accompanied by a drastic increase in the prevalence of dental caries. The DMFT rate for primary teeth showed an almost 90 % increase and the DMFT rate for permanent teeth of persons over 6 years of age exhibited a four-fold increase. The most dramatic change was observed in individuals 30 years of age or older. In this previously caries-free group, all subjects had developed caries in the course of 8 years.