What’s the relationship?

Patients experiencing mental ill health are more likely to suffer from suboptimal oralhealth, including tooth loss, periodontal disease, and tooth decay. Many depressive symptoms, such as anhedonia or lack of motivation, feelings of worthlessness, and fatigue, may adversely affect oral hygiene maintenance. Some antipsychotic medications can cause tardive dyskinesias – an involuntary body movement associated with bruxism and jaw clenching – as well as xerostomia.

Young people: a mental health crisis

The significant rise in the number of young people requiring emergency care due to mental ill-health has recently been described by the Royal College of Psychiatrists as a ‘crisis’. The World Health Organisation warns that one in seven young people between 10 and 19 is suffering from a mental health disorder. Mental illness accounts for 13 per cent of all health issues affecting this age group globally. Mind, the mental health charity, reports that one in six young people between the ages of five and 16 in the UK have experienced a mental health problem, up from one in nine in 2017.