Ninety-two percent of adults consider oral health to be important to overall health, according to the Delta Dental Plans Association's "2022 State of America's Oral Health and Wellness Report."
The report is a national analysis on consumers' opinions and behaviors regarding oral health. Research was conducted from Jan. 19 to Jan. 28. The report includes 1,172 responses from parents of children 12 and younger and 1,027 adults over 18. Read more about the methodology here.
Five more insights:
- Of those surveyed, 62 percent of adults in the U.S. have dental insurance.
- Of those surveyed, 37 percent reported not being able to afford the monthly premium payment for dental insurance.
- Of the adults surveyed, 20 percent believe that an oral health issue they experienced directly affected their overall health.
- Of the parents surveyed, 45 percent of those with children ages 3 to 17 reported their child having an unplanned oral health issue in 2021.
- Eighty-nine percent of children and 72 percent of adults went to a dentist in 2021.