Women's teeth deteriorate many times faster than men's.

Female-specific hormones associated with fertility cause women's teeth to deteriorate much faster than men's, a study finds.

The study's author, University of Oregon professor John Lucax, reviewed data on the prevalence of dental caries by gender among prehistoric communities and modern humans, as well as previously published research on the topic. The scientist confirmed the data that women are more likely to experience dental problems than men, and set out to find out the reasons for these differences.

The spread of caries is associated with the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture and cattle breeding - according to scientists, differences in the condition of teeth in men and women are caused by the transition to sedentism, which changed behavior, the peculiarities of the division of labor between the sexes, and nutrition.

However, Lukaks notes, data from culturally and environmentally very different communities show the same picture - in all cases, women have worse teeth than men. The author of the study notes that the transition to agriculture led to changes in lifestyle - he became less active, and women began to give birth to more children, which led to changes in hormonal levels.

In his opinion, the deterioration of the condition of teeth in women was influenced by the female hormone estrogen, which became more abundant with a higher level of childbearing. In addition, differences in the composition and quantity of saliva played a role - women have less saliva than men, and food debris is removed more slowly. Also, during pregnancy, the composition of saliva and its protective properties change. Changing your diet during pregnancy can be important.

The scientist notes that the interaction of all these factors has not yet been studied. However, their impact on women's dental health can be significant. The fact that the prevalence of caries in women increases faster with age than in men, across different ethnic groups, and in different environmental and cultural settings, supports this interpretation.