Background: Psychological stress arises from an individual's interaction with their environment when perceived demands exceed coping capacity. It influences both systemic and oral health, contributing to anxiety, behavioural changes, and increased susceptibility to periodontal diseases.
Methods: This cross-sectional analytical study involved 400 randomly chosen adults aged 35–44 years from North Gujarat, India. Information was gathered through a predesigned structured questionnaire consisting of three parts: (1) demographic details including age, occupation, education, socioeconomic status, weight, height, and body mass index (BMI); (2) the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) developed by Cohen et al. to assess stress over the past month; and (3) the WHO Oral Health Assessment Form (2013) for clinical evaluation. Data were analysed using SPSS version 20.0, employing Chi-square, ANOVA, and correlation tests.
Results: Stress levels showed a statistically significant positive correlation with gingival bleeding, periodontal pocket depth, and overall periodontal status (p ≤ 0.05). Conversely, BMI showed a negative correlation with perceived stress levels.
Conclusion: Psychological stress significantly influences periodontal health. Although its precise biological mechanisms remain incompletely understood, integrating stress assessment and management into oral health promotion programs could enhance preventive care and improve population oral health outcomes.
Keywords: Anxiety, Body Mass Index, Periodontal Diseases, Subjective Stress.
How to cite this article: Kurup PR, Rathod G, Patel A, Parmar D, Shah RR, R S, Association Of Stress With Oral Health Among The Population Of North Gujarat, India. Int J Drug Deliv Technol. 2026;16(2s): 225-233; DOI: 10.25258/ijddt.16.225-233