Sex-Related Differences in Dental Caries Prevalence in the Prehistoric American Southwest

Summary

This research comprises a comprehensive study of oral health from three Prehistoric Southwest sites in order to identify sexual differences in the prevalence of dental disease after the onset of agriculture. Dental pathologies, such as dental caries and antemortem tooth loss (AMTL), directly relate to an individual’s diet, therefore indicate disparities in subsistence and dietary patterns. Previous studies have found that females exhibit higher rates of caries compared to males. These differences are considered to be the result of physiological, behavioral, or social variances between or within communities. My research reveals further insight into regional and temporal perspectives among pueblo skeletal samples. Specimens from the Southwestern sites of Pottery Mound (LA416), NAN Ranch (LA2465) and Kuaua Pueblo (LA187) were used for this research. I examined 57 male and 56 female dentitions to uncover possible sex-related disparities in dental caries. Males and females from Pottery Mound and Kuaua exhibited similar rates of dental caries and AMTL, suggesting no distinct variation in dietary patterns or behaviors between the sexes. NAN Ranch held the most statistically significant differences between males and females, indicating that the factors associated with the development of dental pathologies are complex and ultimately depend on site-specific dynamics.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 14904