The relationship between consumption of beverages and tooth wear among adults in the United States

Objectives To investigate the prevalence and severity of tooth wear (TW) and its relationship with consumption of beverages among adults in the United States. Methods The National Health and Nutrition Examinations Survey data for 2003‐2004 was analyzed. TW was defined as “wear on at least one surface of at least one examined tooth.” Drink/juice consumption was ascertained via a Food Frequency Questionnaire processed with Diet*Calc software to obtain the average daily consumption frequency for all queried drinks and juice categories including milk. Survey‐weighted descriptive and multivariable analyses with interaction terms were performed. Results Our study sample consisted of 3,773 adults (aged 20 and above). Eighty percent of the subjects had evidence of TW, and soft drinks were the most consumed beverage. Significant interactions between the effects of age, gender, and race/ethnicity on TW were found (P