Community‐based sugar‐sweetened beverage intervention associated with short‐term improvements in self‐rated oral health

Objectives To assess the efficacy of a community‐based childhood obesity prevention intervention targeting Sugar‐sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption on self‐rated oral health among children and their parents/caregivers. Methods This study is a secondary analysis of data from a pilot site‐randomized intervention (H 2 GO!) targeting SSB consumption and obesity risk among children. The 6‐week SSB behavioural intervention was implemented in two Massachusetts Boys and Girls Club sites that were matched for size and racial/ethnic composition. Children ages 9‐12 years and their parents/caregivers were eligible to participate. Data on self‐rated oral health and sociodemographics were obtained via self‐report surveys at baseline, 2 and 6 months. Generalized linear mixed regression models were used to estimate 2‐ and 6‐month change in oral health associated with the intervention. Results Data are from 100 child participants (46% female; 38% Black, 20% Hispanic, 13% White, 12% Multiracial, 11% Asian) and 87 parent participants (78.2% female; 37.9% Hispanic, 29.9% Black, 14.9% Asian, 10.3% White). At baseline, 47% of child participants rated their oral health as good, followed by very good (32%), fair (11%) and excellent (10%). Among parents, 46.3% rated their oral health as good, followed by very good (29.3%), excellent (9.8%), fair (9.7%) and poor (4.9%). The intervention was associated with 2‐ and 6‐month improvements in child participants' mean self‐rated oral health scores (β = 0.78; 95% CI: 0.48, 1.087; P  < .001; β = 0.98; 95% CI: 0.61, 1.34; P  < .001, respectively) and with 2‐month improvements in parent participants' mean self‐rated oral health (β = 0.42; 95% CI: 0.016, 0.82; P  = .042). Conclusion Short‐term improvements in oral health among children and their parents/caregivers were observed among those participating in a SSB behavioural intervention. Community‐based behavioural programmes targeting SSB consumption may be a promising approach to promote oral health as well as prevent childhood obesity.