Oral health is a critical component of overall health. The objective of this study was to describe oral health problems among 47,581 adults aged 45 to 85 in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) among those who have at least one natural tooth (92%) and those without natural teeth across various demographic categories. Among the 47,581 participants in the study, 92% reported having at least one natural tooth (dentate). Among those without teeth, 63% reported an income less than CAD 50,000 versus 39% among those with teeth. Whether they had teeth or not, over 30% of people reported two or more oral health problems. Older adults appear to be retaining their natural teeth (28.9%), but still report experiencing oral health problems. As the population ages, loss of all teeth may not be the most useful proxy for poor oral health, and a population-level understanding of oral health problems may help to better define poor oral health.
Keywords: CLSA; dentate and edentate; oral health.