Evaluation of antioxidant activity in saliva among young adults having diverging food habits and its relation to oral health: A pilot study.

Introduction: Saliva enables the maintenance of oral and systemic health. Evaluation of saliva is very valuable for multiple parameters to be evaluated as they are easy to collect, allow easy and safe sample collection, are non-traumatic, can be repeated with ease, and are non-invasive in nature. Salivary enzyme systems have antimicrobial, antioxidant, and similar functions which aid in the maintenance of homeostasis in the oral cavity. Antioxidants scavenge free radicals from cells and prevent or reduce the damage caused by oxidation.

Materials and methods: In the present study, the pH and antioxidant capacity of the saliva were evaluated. Subjects were categorized as GROUP A: Vegetarians: Diets were entirely devoid of eggs or meat of any type (for more than 20 years). GROUP B: Non-vegetarians: Diets included both red and white meat, consumed either daily or frequently. GROUP C: Eggetarians: Otherwise vegetarian diets which includes eggs, consumed frequently. Ten samples of each group were collected. The pH profile and antioxidant activity of the samples were analysed. Each of the individuals was subjected to oral examination for grading of the status of oral hygiene, caries teeth, missing and extracted teeth, and the health of gingiva. For the same Oral Hygiene Index Simplified (OHIS), Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth (DMFT) and Gingival Status indices were used and the observations were noted.

Observations and results: The average salivary pH for the vegetarians was 7 ± 0.5, that for eggetarians was 7.1 ± 0.5, and in the non-vegetarian group, the average pH was equal to 7.3 ± 0.5. Using the DPPH method, the percentage antioxidant activity of saliva in vegetarians was 20.9 ± 2.1%, while those of eggetarians and non-vegetarians were equal to 5 ± 0.6% and 11.4 ± 2%, respectively. Each individual was subjected to oral examination for grading of the status of oral hygiene (OHIS); decayed, missing, extracted teeth, filled teeth index (DMFT); and the health of gingiva (gingival status index). Overall, eggetarians had a high OHIS index (mean 1.08). The DMFT index was high in non-vegetarians with values ranging from 1 to 8. Statistical analysis using the T-test revealed that the antioxidant potential of the vegetarian group was significantly higher than those of the eggetarian and non-vegetarian dietary groups (P < 0.001). However, the eggetarian and non-vegetarian dietary groups did not significantly differ from each other with respect to this parameter.

Conclusion: The antioxidant capacity is markedly high in vegetarians, 20.9+/- 2.1%, as compared to non-vegetarians, 11.4+/- 2.1%, and was the lowest in eggetarians, 5+/- 0.6%.