Over Half of Elderly Population Without Teeth In Iran

Approximately 55 percent of people aged 65 and above in Iran have lost all their teeth, a reflection of the country's health crisis amidst a dire economic depression.

A report published by Hamshahri Online claims the average number of missing teeth among Iranians aged 30 to 40 stands at 12 to 13.

The report paints a bleak picture of oral health among young children, particularly those aged five to six, more than 80 percent of whom have on average five decayed, extracted, or filled milk teeth.

Citing research conducted by the Research Center of the Parliament in 2016, Hamshahri Online identified Kordestan Province as having the highest incidence of decayed, missing, and filled teeth among six and 12-year-old children.

Current statistics reveal that the average Iranian has at least six decayed teeth, a stark contrast to the decay index of zero observed in Scandinavian countries.

The report attributes the dire situation to several factors, including the prohibitively high cost of dental care, lack of insurance coverage for dental services, widespread public ignorance regarding dental hygiene, and a shortage of dentists in certain regions.

The report shows that many Iranians, grappling with financial constraints, opt to forego dental treatments altogether, resorting to tooth extraction to evade the costs associated with dental care.

Etemad newspaper reported on February 17 that a significant proportion of households have neglected dental check-ups altogether, with data revealing that at least 50 percent of households have not been to the dentist in the past year.