The government has official statistics for measuring dental health in the United States.  The statistic: The percentage of seniors 65-74 who have lost all of their teeth.

Modern dentistry has driven that percentage down over time nationally, but there is a huge difference when comparing individual states.  So what is the main reason some states have seniors with more teeth?  Income.  Statistical analysis shows that a decline in per capita income creates a rise in tooth loss. Correlating statistics show that states with the highest rates of tooth loss are usually the states with the lowest number of dentists per capita. SIDENOTE: Dental salaries did not factor into the tooth loss rate in any way.

For a complete chart and article about states and tooth loss, visit:

The Demographics of Teeth
by Rob Gebeloff
December 12, 2007