@mastersthesis {6243, title = {Investigating the relationship between recent dental visits, memory, and dementia risk factors}, volume = {3598460}, year = {2013}, note = {Copyright - Copyright ProQuest, UMI Dissertations Publishing 2013 Last updated - 2014-01-20 First page - n/a}, month = {2013}, pages = {112}, school = {Fielding Graduate University}, type = {Ph.D.}, address = {Santa Barbara, CA}, abstract = {Research has concluded in recent years that oral health status is associated with dementia. However, little has been understood about how dental visits, which are a modifiable lifestyle variable, affect memory. The current study applied generalized estimating equations models to the RAND Health and Retirement Study nationally representative longitudinal database in order to determine whether recent dental visits predicted (a) higher memory scores, (b) subjective memory status, and (c) perceived change in self-rated memory. Results indicated that persons with recent dental visits obtained better episodic memory scores, had better self-rated memory, and reported perceived change in self-rated memory. The findings suggested that visiting the dentist and maintaining oral health are crucial for healthy cognitive aging. It is concluded that older adults should regularly visit the dentist in order to maintain memory capabilities.}, keywords = {Gerontology, Health Conditions and Status, Healthcare, Methodology, Risk Taking}, url = {http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.umich.edu/docview/1459230336?accountid=14667http://mgetit.lib.umich.edu/?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004\&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8\&rfr_id=info:sid/ProQuest+Dissertations+\%26+Theses+A\%26I\&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertat}, author = {Carlson, Holly I.} }