Recovery Act Grant to Examine Late-Life Oral Health

Jung Ki Kim, research assistant professor at the USC Davis School of Gerontology, received a $448,061 Recovery Act grant to examine oral health and healthy aging.

Her research will build off of evidence that a higher presence of early-age oral health problems such as tooth decay, tooth count and oral symptoms such as dry mouth and difficulty swallowing leads to premature aging in disadvantaged and some minority populations.

“We will be analyzing life expectancy based on oral health indicators such as years of life without periodontal disease and years of life with natural teeth,” Kim said.  “We are particularly interested in looking at the link between some biological risk factors and oral health, including indicators of inflammatory, immune and metabolic system processes, and bone density.”

Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 1999-2006 and 1988-1994, which provides detailed records of dental records, Kim will look at how factors such as race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, health behaviors, health care use and availability, chronic health conditions, psychological and cognitive characteristics and biological risk factors lead to oral health problems in late life and how they are linked to premature aging.

“While previous research has been focusing on the status quo of oral health, we will develop a complex model that explains mechanisms by which oral aging is related to health in later life.”

Kim hopes to hire two fulltime researchers and a part-time research assistant with Recovery Act funds.