Associations among internet addiction, lifestyle behaviors, and dental caries among high school students in Southwest Japan.

ABSTRACT: Internet addiction (IA) negatively affects adolescents' lifestyle behaviors. Inappropriate lifestyle behaviors could have negative effects on dental health. This cross-sectional study aimed to test whether IA was indirectly associated with dental caries through unhealthy lifestyle behaviors among high school students in southwest Japan. IA was characterized by a Young's Internet Addiction Test score of ≥ 50, unhealthy lifestyle behaviors by a cumulative count of 8 different lifestyle behaviors (termed the unhealthy lifestyle behavior index [ULBI]), and dental caries by the number of decayed, missing, and filled permanent teeth (DMFT). Poisson regression and linear regression models were fitted to the relationship, with IA as the exposure, the ULBI as the mediator, and the DMFT as the outco

SUBMITTER: Iwasaki M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9569321 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature