Dry mouth and dietary quality in older adults in north Carolina.

Objectives: To quantify prevalence of dry mouth, association between dry mouth and beverage intake and dietary quality, and association between dry mouth and self-reported dietary accommodations to oral health deficits.

Design: Cross-sectional study; data from self-reports.

Setting: Rural North Carolina counties with substantial African-American and American Indian populations.

Impact of denture usage patterns on dietary quality and food avoidance among older adults.

This study categorizes older adults living in rural areas by denture status, assesses the frequency of wearing dentures during meals, and determines whether denture status or use is associated with dietary quality or the number of foods avoided. A multi-ethnic population-based sample of adults ≥60 years (N = 635) in the rural United States was interviewed. Survey included denture use, removing dentures before eating, and foods avoided due to oral health problems.

Association between dietary quality of rural older adults and self-reported food avoidance and food modification due to oral health problems.

Objectives: To quantify the association between food avoidance and modification due to oral health problems, to examine the association between food practices and dietary quality, and to determine foods associated with these self-management behaviors.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Rural North Carolina.

The diet quality of rural older adults in the South as measured by healthy eating index-2005 varies by ethnicity.

The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans publication placed increased emphasis on the importance of consuming a wide range of healthful foods and further reducing the consumption of less healthful ones. These recommendations are challenging for rural elders whose functional limitations, fewer resources, and limited access to foods negatively affect the quality of their diets. The purpose of this study was to characterize the diet quality of a multiethnic population-based sample of older adults (N=635) in the southern United States.

Severe tooth loss in older adults as a key indicator of compromised dietary quality.

Objective: Poor oral health influences the dietary quality of older individuals. The objective of the present study was to relate the number of teeth to adherence to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans among an ethnically diverse sample of older adults.

Design: A block cluster design was used to obtain a sample of older adults.

Food avoidance and food modification practices of older rural adults: association with oral health status and implications for service provision.

Purpose: Dietary variation is important for health maintenance and disease prevention among older adults. However, oral health deficits impair ability to bite and chew foods. This study examines the association between oral health and foods avoided or modified in a multiethnic rural population of older adults.

Disparities in oral health status between older adults in a multiethnic rural community: the rural nutrition and oral health study.

Objectives: To compare oral health status according to ethnicity and socioeconomic status in African-American, American-Indian, and white dentate and edentulous community-dwelling older adults.

Design: Cross-sectional study; data from self-reports and oral examinations.

Participants: A multistage cluster sampling design was used to recruit 635 participants aged 60 and older from rural North Carolina counties with substantial African-American and American-Indian populations.

Oral health self-care behaviors of rural older adults.

Objectives: This analysis describes the dental self-care behaviors used by a multiethnic sample of older adults and delineates the associations of self-care behaviors with personal characteristics and oral health problems.

Methods: A cross-sectional comprehensive oral health survey conducted with a random, multiethnic (African-American, American Indian, white) sample of 635 community-dwelling rural adults aged 60 years and older was completed in two rural southern counties.

Results: Rural older adults engage in a variety of self-care behaviors, including the use of over-the-counter (OTC) medicine (12.

Use of tobacco products among rural older adults: prevalence of ever use and cumulative lifetime use.

Tobacco use is a well-documented contributor to morbidity and mortality in the US and worldwide. Information on the comprehensive use of tobacco products is lacking, particularly smokeless tobacco in its various forms. Data from 635 older (>/=60 years) African American, American Indian and White adults in rural North Carolina were analyzed to assess current and lifetime use of cigarettes, cigars, pipe, snuff and chewing tobacco.