More than 70% of adults aged over 65 years old in the US are affected by periodontitis. Previous research has suggested that lycopene could be an adjunct therapy for the condition. In the current study, researchers explored the link between dietary lycopene and risk of severe periodontitis among non-Hispanic White and non-Hispanic Black (NHB) individuals.
To do so, they analyzed data from 1,227 people aged between 65 and 79 years old from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (2009–2014). Data included lycopene intake- determined by a two-day diary interview questionnaire- and oral health records. Just under half of the participants showed signs of periodontitis, with similar numbers having insufficient dietary lycopene.
Overall, the researchers found that individuals with adequate lycopene intake were 67% less likely to have severe periodontitis. The effects were primarily driven by NHW individuals as opposed to NHB individuals, for whom no statistically significant link was found.
The researchers further found that NHB adults were significantly more likely to develop severe periodontitis than NHW adults. While NHB individuals constituted around 10.5% of participants, they accounted for around 12.2% of severe diagnoses. Women were less likely to develop severe forms of the condition than men.
“This cross-sectional study's findings suggest that targeted interventions using dietary lycopene as a preventative measure to delay or prevent PD onset should be race and sex specific,” wrote the researchers in their study.
“However, further longitudinal and/or randomized controlled trials are needed to determine whether the observed correlation between dietary lycopene intake and PD is causal and whether increasing dietary lycopene intake to sufficient levels effectively prevents and slows PD progression,” they added.
Sources: Science Daily, The Journal of Nutrition, Health, and Aging