DENTAL CARIES IS A DISEASE OF CIVILIZATION

Various factors of etiology, pathogenesis of dental caries, including nutrition, social mores and habits of a person and their role in the occurrence of dental caries are considered. It is shown that this disease is a typical disease of civilization. Its widespread distribution and the increasing infestation of the population are directly related to the introduction of sugar into the human diet as a mass, inexpensive and delicious food product. This happened in the late XIX – early XX centuries, which coincides with a sharp wave of increased incidence of caries. A further increase in the proportion of sugar in the diet quickly led to a continuous incidence of caries among the population. In many ways, this was facilitated by the peculiarities of sugar as a food product, as well as the mores and habits of people. The interrelationships of etiological and pathogenetic aspects of dental caries with human nutrition, the peculiarities of carbohydrate consumption and other factors are shown, and the main recommendations for the prevention of dental caries are given.