Diet and Dental Caries in Elite Athletes in Ireland
The study found a high prevalence of untreated carious lesions in this cohort, exceeding previously reported levels for elite athletes. Cluster analysis revealed that nutrient consumption patterns, particularly the timing of starch intake, may provide insights beyond those offered by traditional food-group classifications for understanding dietary factors associated with caries risk. These findings underscore the need for prioritising dietary advice and caries prevention strategies in this population, with particular attention on snacking patterns rather than focusing solely on cariogenic food categories.
Authors
- Sharon M. Madigan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8709-9941)
- Lewis Winning (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8783-8089)
- Oscar Cassetti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5174-0584)
- Brendan Egan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8327-9016)
- Michael Crowe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4761-5945)
- Annie Hughes
- Aifric O'Sullivan
- Michael O'Sullivan
Institutions
- University of Limerick (IE)
- Food for Health Ireland (IE)
- Dublin Dental University Hospital (IE)
- Sport Ireland (IE)
- Dublin City University (IE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics
- Published
- 2026-01-20
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.70203
- Primary Topic
- Dental Health and Care Utilization
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00