Are single mothers in Britain failing to monitor their oral health?

Abstract

Objectives: This study was designed to identify association between self reported dental attendance patterns and family structure in the UK. Design: A national study involving 666 women with dependent children. Setting: Home interviews were undertaken exploring time and reason for last dental visit. In addition, numerous sociodemographic and service related characteristics were collected. Results: Bivariate analysis identified that family structure was associated with respondents' self reported dental attendance patterns: marital status (p<0.01), number of children (p<0.05), and age of children (p<0.05). When the combined effects of age, family structure, income, educational attainment, working status, and service factors (difficulty obtaining a NHS dentist and time taken to get an appointment) on dental attendance were explored, family structure emerged as a very important predicator of service use. Notably, young (age 16-34) single mothers and those with more than two children were less likely to have attended the dentist within the past year for reasons other than a dental emergency compared with older (age 35 or more), mothers from a two parent family and those with one or two children. Conclusion: Family structure is associated with self reported dental attendance patterns. Young single mothers with more than two children may be failing to monitor their oral health appropriately.