Abstract:
BACKGROUND: The oral health education programs which have been organised and
delivered in Tanzania were not based on a thorough understanding of behaviours
which influence oral health. Therefore, evaluation of these programs became
difficult. This study aimed at investigating the oral health related behaviours
and their determinants among Tanzanian adults.
METHODS: A national pathfinder cross sectional survey was conducted in 2006
involving 1759 respondents from the six geographic zones of mainland Tanzania.
Frequency distributions, Chi square and multiple logistic regression analyses
were performed using SPSS version 13.0.
RESULTS: The rates of abstinence from alcohol for the past 30 days and life time
smoking were 61.6% and 16.7% respectively, with males being more likely to smoke
(OR 9.2, CI 6.3 -12.9, p < 0.001) and drink alcohol (OR 1.5, CI 1.2 -1.8, p <
0.001). Multiple regression analysis revealed that; having dental pain (OR 0.7,
CI 0.5-0.8; p < 0.001) and being minimally educated (OR 0.48, CI 0.4-0.6; p <
0.001) reduced the likelihood of having a high sugar score. Whereas being male
(OR 1.5, CI 1.2- 1.8; p < 0.001), urban (OR 1.9, CI 1.5 -2.3; p < 0.001), and
young (OR 1.5, CI 1.2 -1.8; p < 0.001) increased the likelihood of having a high
sugar score. Urban residents were less likely to take alcohol (OR 0.7, CI
0.6-0.9; p < 0.01), or smoke cigarette (OR = 0.7, CI = 0.6-0.9); less likely to
be those who do not use fruits (OR 0.3, CI 0.2-0.4; p < 0.001); dental clinic (OR
0.5, CI 0.4-0.7; p < 0.001); factory made tooth brushes (OR 0.1, CI 0.08-0.17; p
< 0.001) and toothpaste (OR 0.1, CI 0.1-0.2; p < 0.001) than their rural
counterparts. More rural (13.2%) than urban (4.6%) residents used charcoal.
CONCLUSION: The findings of this study demonstrated social demographic
disparities in relation to oral health related behaviors, while dental pain was
associated with low consumption of sugar and high likelihood to take alcohol.
