Association Between Perceived Racial Discrimination, Socioeconomic Status, and Oral Health Among Children: Evidence...

Examine the association between perceived racial discrimination and children's oral health outcomes by race-ethnicity and socioeconomic status (SES).

Using the National Survey of Children's Health (2016-2022), we examined the relationship between perceived racial discrimination (caregiver-reported child exposure) and two outcomes: a child's receipt of a dental visit and the presence of any oral health problem in the past year. Logistic regression models were estimated, stratified by race-ethnicity (Black, Hispanic, White), and adjusted for SES using the federal poverty level (FPL). We also interacted perceived racial discrimination and FPL to observe how associations differ by SES.

Perceived racial discrimination was associated with lower rates of dental visits for White and Hispanic children, with no significant association for Black children. Perceived racial discrimination was associated with a higher likelihood of having an oral health problem for all three racial-ethnic groups. In interaction models, associations with dental visits were inconsistent. The association between perceived racial discrimination and having an oral health problem in the past year was primarily isolated to the lowest SES strata (< 200% FPL), with higher likelihoods of having an oral health problem for all three racial-ethnic groups among those who perceived racial discrimination.

Perceived racial discrimination is associated with worse oral health and inconsistently with having a dental visit. The stronger association with oral health problems among children in the lowest SES strata highlights the need for targeted interventions addressing both racial discrimination and SES disparities to improve child oral health outcomes.