Association of short sleep duration and long media use with caries in school children

Background: Individual lifestyle factors are associated with dental caries in children. The aim of this study was to investigate comprehensively the association between dental caries in elementary school children and lifestyle factors of the children and their parents. Methods: Children from five elementary schools in Takaoka city, Toyama Prefecture, Japan (1,699: 848 boys, 851 girls, age range 6–12 years) participated in a survey conducted in March 2016. Questions on socioeconomic status (SES) and lifestyle factors in the children and their parents were included. Children who received treatment for three or more dental caries were defined as having many caries. Logistic regression analysis was performed to evaluate whether these factors were associated with the number of caries. Results: The percentage of children with many caries (≥3) was 38.4%. In univariate analysis, being in 5^th or 6^th grade, frequent snacking, short sleep duration, long hours of media use, paternal smoking, and parental skipping of breakfast were significantly associated with many caries. Lack of affluence was marginally significant. In multivariate analysis, the association of short hours of sleep and long hours of media use remained significant. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for media use of 1–2 h and more than 2 h were 1.79 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.30–2.46) and 2.24 (95% CI: 1.61–3.11) respectively. The adjusted OR for less than 8 h of sleep was 1.49 (95% CI: 1.07–2.06). Conclusions: Long duration of media use and short duration of sleep were associated with dental caries. Establishing a healthy lifestyle is necessary for preventing dental caries in children.