Visiting your dentist regularly or at least once a year can help prevent those painful and unsightly dental carries and gum problems. Oral care is also crucial to your overall health as poor dental care is associated with unwanted diseases and health conditions such as arthritis, heart disease, atherosclerosis and diabetes.
It appears though that many Americans are not mindful of taking good care of their teeth and mouth as a new survey shows that about one in three adults in the U.S. did not see a dentist within the past 12 months.
A Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index survey from Jan. 2 to Dec. 29, 2013 shows that one in three adults in the U.S. did not see a dentist in the past 12 months. The telephone-based survey, which involved 178,072 respondents, shows that only 64.7 percent of American adults visited their dentist at least once in 2013.
It also appears that income has something to do with dental visits as those who earn more were more likely to visit their dentist than those who earn less. Gallup researchers noted that people who earn at least $120,000 in household income per year were twice as likely to have visited their dentist in 2013 as respondents who earn less than $12,000 per year.
Blacks and Hispanics were also less likely to have visited their dentist in the past year compared to Asians and Whites. Only 55 percent of both Black and Hispanic respondents said they visited their dentist in 2013 while 70 percent of both White and Asian respondents reported they have visited their dentist in the past year. Young adults between 18 to 29 years old were also least likely to have visited their dentist compared to middle aged and older adults.
Marital status also appears to affect a person's likelihood to visit a dentist as those who are married were more likely to see their dentist at least once per year than those who are not married. Those who are separated, on the other hand, are the least likely to visit their dentist.
The American Dental Association (ADA) recommends adults to visit their dentist at least once per year. ADA says that even those who have low risks for developing oral disease can benefit from yearly cleanings.
