The Inter-relationships between Body Dissatisfaction, Body Image Disturbance and Oral Health

Body image concerns include overvaluation of appearance, body dissatisfaction, and/or a distorted view of our body and have long been associated with weight and eating related problems.The aim of our study was to explore the effect of dental health on body-image of adolescents, on their overall level of body dissatisfaction and body disturbance. Significant differences were found between body dissatisfaction and body image disturbance related to oral health status (presence of current extracted teeth, insatisfaction by appearance of own teeth, gingival status) and oral health behaviors (flossing, mouthwashes frequency and reason for dental visit). Further studies should investigate the properties of this model in different populations.