Take note of dental problems, study says your teeth could tell how long youll live
Older adults with a higher number of missing or untreated decayed teeth were found to have a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality — a measure that captures death from any cause earlier than expected.
New Delhi: The state of a person’s teeth may reveal far more about their health than previously thought — including how long they are likely to live. New research from Japan suggests that not just the number of teeth an older adult has, but the condition of those teeth, is closely linked to their risk of early death.
In one of the largest studies of its kind, researchers from the University of Osaka analysed health and dental records of more than 190,000 adults aged 75 years and above. Each tooth was categorised as either decayed, healthy, filled, or missing. This allowed scientists to move beyond simple tooth count and examine how dental quality can impact long-term health outcomes.
The findings were striking. Older adults with a higher number of missing or untreated decayed teeth were found to have a significantly higher risk of all-cause mortality — a measure that captures death from any cause earlier than expected. In contrast, people who had retained more sound or professionally filled teeth were less likely to die during the study period.
Essentially, researchers noted that filled teeth, which were repaired by a dentist, had a similar survival advantage as healthy teeth. This hints at how timely dental treatment can offset some of the risks associated with decay.
"Our analysis showed that the total number of sound and filled teeth was a stronger predictor of mortality than the number of sound teeth alone,” the researchers wrote in their paper, published in BMC Oral Health. They added that previous studies had largely focused on how many teeth people had, rather than the clinical condition of each tooth.
Although the study did not establish a cause and effect, scientists believe that the link between oral health and longevity could be due to chronic inflammation. Untreated tooth decay and gum disease can trigger persistent inflammatory responses, which are increasingly recognised as contributors to heart disease, diabetes complications, and other systemic illnesses. Tooth loss can also affect nutrition, making it harder for older adults to chew fibre-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables, and protein sources essential for maintaining strength and immunity.
Authors also noted that social and economic factors have a role to play in it. Limited access to dental care often reflects health inequalities that influence life expectancy. Yet, the findings align with growing evidence that oral health is linked to overall well-being. Supporting this, a study published in Geriatrics & Gerontology examined oral frailty, with symptoms like difficulty swallowing, chewing, missing teeth, or dry mouth. Older adults are more likely to face three or more of these were prone to dying early. As populations age globally, researchers say future studies should look not only at how many teeth people retain, but whether those teeth are healthy, repaired, or neglected — and how that shapes longevity.