As dental professionals, we are tasked with helping people achieve better oral health. However, the mouth is not an isolated organ and, therefore, our remit is far broader than simply advising on how to maintain the teeth and gums. Instead, we must consider the patient as a whole and offer comprehensive support where appropriate. For example, we know that diet can have a significant impact on a person’s dental and systemic health. Helping patients to assess their food and drink consumption, and make healthier decisions, will have a lasting effect on their mouth, body, and mind.
From the Mediterranean with love
There is some conflicting information online about which diets are best for health and wellbeing. However, a systematic review found a Mediterranean diet reduces the concentration of various inflammatory biomarkers – more so than a vegetarian or vegan diet.[i] Often defined as a diet high in plant-derived foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds, as well as olive oil as the main fat used in cooking, it also typically involves low amounts of red or processed meat and sweet items. It is believed that the diet helps to inhibit pro-inflammatory mediators, promote anti-inflammatory functions, and modulate cell-mediated immunity, among other potential functions.
There is also initial evidence to suggest that an anti-inflammatory diet such as this could support the management and treatment of mental disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.[ii] Once again, more research is required to confirm the full potential of dietary patterns on such conditions.
The same can be said of the link between the Mediterranean diet and oral health. A paper published in 2025 found that this anti-inflammatory dietary pattern, with lower red meat consumption, was also associated with reduced severity of periodontal disease.[iii] Larger scale studies are needed to confirm the relationship and mechanisms at play.
Of course, this is not the only way that food consumption affects oral health. Diet, and in particular, sugar intake, has also been linked to caries risk. The literature shows that when ≤10% of daily energy is consumed in free sugars, the risk of caries remains low.[iv] While this is not an absolute threshold, it does indicate a target for patients to aim for to protect their teeth from harm.
Other ingredients that add to a balanced diet include cruciferous vegetables for their plaque-fighting properties,[v] vitamin D for enamel strength and added protection from caries,[vi] and fibre for a reduced risk of inflammation and periodontal diseases.[vii]
The price of health
While all of this is important, and useful information to share with patients, we must remember that other barriers exist that prevent some from maintaining a healthy balanced diet.
The food environment in which patients live is one. At a time when cost of living remains high and many families are financially challenged, accessibility to healthy food may be reduced. A very interesting report published by The Food Foundation[viii] in 2025 found that, in general, healthier foods are more than twice as expensive per calorie as less healthy foods – the former group increased in price by almost double that of alternatives in the preceding two years. Defining ‘healthy’ food according to its Nutrient Profile Modelling score category, it found that healthier options averaged £8.80 per 1,000 kcal, compared to £4.30 for other items. The same report calculated that the lowest income groups in the UK would have to spend a massive 45% of their disposable income just on food to meet the government-recommended diet. This figure increased even further to 70% for households with children.
The situation is even worse for those with food allergies and dietary requirements. A report by Coeliac UK[ix] suggested that a gluten-free weekly food shop is costing an enormous 35% more than the gluten-containing equivalent – 77% of people affected struggled to afford the gluten-free products they needed. Higher costs are also associated with a lactose-free diet,[x] with a Food Standards Agency report finding that household catering for any food hypersensitivity or allergy also spend 11% more on meals when eating out or getting a takeaway.[xi]
A matter of perspective
These are not barriers that dental professionals can overtly help affected patients to overcome. However, we can help the individuals we see to come up with practical options that might work for them and their families. We’re not striving for perfect, just a better diet for improved oral and systemic health. For some patients, this might be as simple as swapping a daily fizzy drink for water. Others might be interested in online recipes that promote healthy yet affordable meals. All it takes from us is to start the conversation and let our patients know that we are here to help support their wellbeing in any way that we can.
For further information about the endodontic referral services available from EndoCare, please call 020 7224 0999 or visit www.endocare.co.uk
Author: Michael Sultan, EndoCare
[i] Koelman L, Egea Rodrigues C, Aleksandrova K. Effects of Dietary Patterns on Biomarkers of Inflammation and Immune Responses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Adv Nutr. 2022 Feb 1;13(1):101-115. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmab086. PMID: 34607347; PMCID: PMC8803482.
[ii] van Zonneveld SM, van den Oever EJ, Haarman BCM, Grandjean EL, Nuninga JO, van de Rest O, Sommer IEC. An Anti-Inflammatory Diet and Its Potential Benefit for Individuals with Mental Disorders and Neurodegenerative Diseases—A Narrative Review. Nutrients. 2024; 16(16):2646. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16162646
[iii] Mainas G, Grosso G, Di Giorgio J, et al. Relationship between Mediterranean diet and periodontal inflammation in a UK population: A cross-sectional study. J Periodontol. 2025; 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1002/jper.70016
[iv] Moynihan P. Sugars and Dental Caries: Evidence for Setting a Recommended Threshold for Intake. Adv Nutr. 2016 Jan 15;7(1):149-56. doi: 10.3945/an.115.009365. PMID: 26773022; PMCID: PMC4717883.
[v] Baruch Y, Golberg K, Sun Q, Yew-Hoong Gin K, Marks RS, Kushmaro A. 3,3′-Diindolylmethane (DIM): A Potential Therapeutic Agent against Cariogenic Streptococcus mutans Biofilm. Antibiotics (Basel). 2023 Jun 6;12(6):1017. doi: 10.3390/antibiotics12061017. PMID: 37370336; PMCID: PMC10295630.
[vi] Ziada, S., Wishahe, A., Mabrouk, N. et al. Vitamin D deficiency and oral health: a systematic review of literature. BMC Oral Health 25, 468 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12903-025-05883-w
[vii] Swarnamali H, Medara N, Chopra A, Spahr A, Jayasinghe TN. Role of Dietary Fibre in Managing Periodontal Diseases-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Human Intervention Studies. Nutrients. 2023 Sep 18;15(18):4034. doi: 10.3390/nu15184034. PMID: 37764817; PMCID: PMC10536522.
[viii] The Food Foundation. Broken Plate Report 2025. The state of the nation’s food system. https://foodfoundation.org.uk/sites/default/files/2025-01/TFF_The%20Broken%20Plate%202005%20FINAL%20DIGITAL.pdf [Accessed December 2025]
[ix] Coeliac UK. Cost of living 2024 press release. People with coeliac disease paying up to 35% more for weekly food shop. June 2024. https://www.coeliac.org.uk/document-library/9211-cost-of-living-2024-press-release/ [Accessed December 2025]
[x] Taeger M, Thiele S. Additional costs of lactose-reduced diets: lactose-free dairy product substitutes are a cost-effective alternative for people with lactose intolerance. Public Health Nutr. 2021 Sep;24(13):4043-4053. doi: 10.1017/S1368980021002779. Epub 2021 Jun 28. PMID: 34180787; PMCID: PMC10195326.
[xi] Fodo Standards Agency. Estimating financial cost to individuals with a food hypersensitivity. July 2022. https://www.food.gov.uk/research/food-hypersensitivity/estimating-financial-cost-to-individuals-with-a-food-hypersensitivity?print=1 [Accessed December 2025]
