Abstract
Thirteen hundred and nineteen children aged 3 years living in Higashi-ku of Fukuoka City were examined for dental caries. To their mothers were given questionnaires concerning feeding methods, between-meal eating habits, using period of feeding bottles, use of feeding bottles at bedtime, kinds of between-meal snacks, drinking of acidophilus beverages, and so on. The percentage of the children with carious teeth was 75.5 and the mean deft was 4.5, and these were both samaller than the percentage of children with caious teeth and the mean deft of the whole nation, respectively. The percent of children with carious teeth was significantly larger in the following groups: breast-fed children, children using feeding bottles for more than 24 months, children using feeding bottles often at bedtime, children eating between meals irregularly, and children drinking acidophilus beverages every day or 2-3 times per week. The groups that took between-meal snacks irregularly had the largest percentage of children with carious teeth (83.5%) and the largest mean deft (5.5) throughout this study. Regarding the use of feeding bottles at bedtime, and between-meal eating habits including drinking of acidophilus beverages, breast-fed children did not have so strong a tendency toward dental caries as mixedand bottle-fed children. This study indicated that some circumstances such as breast feeding, long-term use of feeding bottles, frequent use of feeding bottles at bedtime, and irregular eating between-meal snacks might be harmful to the dental health of 3-year-old children.
