Mothers' Resistant Microbes Affect Their Children's Teeth
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- Published: Thursday, 25 January 2024 11:01
- Written by Guy Tuggle
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A new study by scientists at universities in the USA and Kuwait, published in PLOS One and reported in The Times (17th January 2024) has ’found evidence that microbes that live in the mouth are linked to tooth decay are much more likely to be passed down to an infant from its mother if her dental hygiene is poor’.
Candida Auris is a highly transmittable and antibiotic resistant fungus. It can pass from person to person not only by close contact, for example by sharing food and using the same utensils, but also via bathwater. This fungus is found in carious lesions but research has not yet established what part it plays in the cariogenic process.
The survey found that mothers with high levels of dental plaque were eight times more likely to transfer the fungus to their infant than mothers with clean teeth and attentive oral hygiene. Although the presence of the microbe in the dental plaque of young children with tooth decay is not a new discovery, the link to the mother’s own oral health is thought to be a significant risk factor.
"Those with more dental plaque had a significantly increased risk of transmitting C.albicans to their infants" the research said. Black children and those who attend day centres, where they may be exposed to carers with poor oral health, endured an ’elevated risk’.
The research methodology examined 160 pairs of mothers and children. In 94 per cent of cases where a mother and child were found to have Candida albicans in their mouths they had "highly genetically related strains". The research concluded that there was a "strong maternal influence on children’s C.albicans acquisition".
The Times report acknowledged that the fungus is present, at least to some extent, in the mouths of around 46 per cent of healthy infants and 69 per cent of healthy adults, with a lower incidence in babies who have been exclusively breastfed (according to earlier studies).
25 per cent of five year olds in Britain had tooth decay according to research in 2019 and 11 per cent had tooth decay by the age of three. Pregnant mothers who have access to a dentist should be closely monitored, especially for gum conditions which can take an adverse hit during pregnancy.
In light of this new research, dental clinicians and midwives may need to discuss the wider benefits of oral hygiene with expectant mothers with messaging about ’if you want your children to have healthy teeth, start with your own’ baked in.
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