Impact of Oral Health on Potential Categories of Dietary Patterns in Chinese Older Adults: Based on the 2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey Dataset

ABSTRACT Background Oral health is strongly associated with dietary habits; however, most relevant studies have focused on single dietary components. Dietary patterns, integrating data on the diversity of food group consumption, can offer a comprehensive understanding of the diet–health association. Objective We classified dietary patterns among Chinese older adults based on dietary diversity (DD) and evaluated the association of oral health with latent classes of dietary patterns. Methods We analysed the data of 11 948 older adults from the 2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Study (CLHLS) dataset. Latent class analysis (LCA) was employed to identify distinct dietary pattern classes based on DD. We then used multivariate logistic regression to examine the associations between oral health indicators and latent dietary pattern classes. Results The LCA results demonstrated four latent dietary pattern classes: plant protein‐dominant, omnivorous with limited diversity, balanced diversity and animal protein‐dominant. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that various oral health indicators—including the number of teeth, denture use, daily toothbrushing frequency and facial or jaw pain within the previous 6 months—significantly influenced dietary pattern classification. Conclusions We identified four dietary patterns through LCA and noted that oral health status significantly affects dietary preferences among older adults. Adaptive eating behaviours influenced by cultural and socioeconomic factors aid in reducing the negative impact of oral health issues on diet. Our results indicated a dynamic, multifactorial relationship between oral health and dietary patterns in the older population, underscoring the necessity for integrated interventions combining oral care with dietary guidance.