Aims: Describe the socioeconomic patterning of dental health trajectories, in terms of changes in number

of decayed, missing and filled primary and permanent teeth, from birth to young adulthood, in the

ALSPAC cohort.

Analyze whether changes in dental health in this period is related to socioeconomic background, in terms

of parental socioeconomic data, and to suspected adverse early exposures antenatal and postnatal, and

finally to individual characteristics from birth to young adulthood.

Hypotheses:

a) Early adverse exposures both antenatal and postnatal have causal relations to dental health

trajectories.

b) Expected relations between socioeconomic position of parents and dental health trajectories of

their offspring can be explained by overrepresentation of early adverse exposures in low socioeconomic

groups.

c) Dental health trajectories from birth to young adulthood also relate to various individual

characteristics. For instance individual level of education, health behaviors and awareness, and general

health.

d) Social mobility will affect the level of dental health as young adult.

Outcome variables: Number of decayed, missing and filled primary and permanent teeth (dmft

and DMFT) from children in focus obtained from clinical examinations at 31,43 and 61 months.

Combined with appropriate outcome measures from questionnaires antenatal to age 17.

2. Main exposure variables: Life course socioeconomic position

- Parental Socio-economic position: Educational level of parents, marital status, housing tenure,

income level, car ownership

- Child's Individual socio-economic position: Educational level, labour market association

3. Other exposure/mediating/confounding factors:

Antenatal:

- Parents health status: Comorbidity such as diabetes, psychological disorders etc.

- Maternal health awareness: Dietary habits, smoking habits (both parents), level of physical

activity, BMI, use of dental health care system, medication

Postnatal:

- Parents health status: Comorbidity

- Parents health awareness: Breastfeeding characteristics, dietary habits, smoking habits, use of

dental health care system

- Individual dental hygiene

- Individual health behavior and awareness: Dietary habits, smoking habits, physical activity level,

BMI

- Individual general health: Birth weight, Comorbidity

- Individual social network: Level of support from family and friends