Factors That Influence the Implementation of Obesity Support in Dental Settings: An Observational Study in Texas

Despite widespread awareness, obesity remains an epidemic in the United States. Combating obesity requires contributions from various healthcare professionals, including dental practitioners. This cross-sectional study aims to explore the proportion of dental care providers in Texas who address obesity with their patients and to identify factors influencing their engagement in obesity management.

A cross-sectional observational design was adopted. A total of 127 dental providers, predominantly dental hygienists (89.9%), completed an anonymous online survey about their perceptions of obesity interventions in the dental setting. Descriptive analysis, independent t-tests, Chi-squared tests, and logistic regression were used to analyze the data.

The findings revealed that 58.8% of dental practitioners who completed the survey were interested in addressing obesity, but 3.9% were doing so. Key factors that increased the likelihood of practitioners addressing obesity included believing they had a role in reducing obesity (aOR = 5.15, p = 0.002), noticing an increase in obese patients (aOR = 3.98, p = 0.012), and feeling confident in using behaviour modification techniques (aOR = 5.39, p = 0.003). The main barriers identified were the fear of offending patients (p = 0.011) and low confidence (p < 0.001) in applying nutritional modification skills for weight management. The preferred method for providing obesity interventions was printed materials (75.6%).

Despite interest in addressing overweight/obesity, most dental hygienists do not engage in overweight/obesity interventions due to barriers like fear of offending patients and low confidence in providing screening, brief advice and referral to dieticians or physicians. Enhancing dental hygienists' confidence and integrating supportive materials may improve obesity management in dental settings.