Whitening More than Teeth: Race Disparities in Oral Health Care

Abstract

Racial disparities in oral health have existed in America for decades. Although dental organizations such as the American Dental Association (ADA) have taken steps to minimize these disparities, they still exist across the country. There is a need for more research around the topics of racial health disparities, specifically within oral health, along with qualitative data on this topic. This study aims to investigate the prevalence of racial disparities in oral health in the Dallas Fort-Worth (DFW) metroplex. Eight dentists were interviewed about their patients, followed by coding to analyze the collected data. The results showed that racial oral health disparities likely do exist in DFW due to a variety of reasons suuch as insurance policies, barriers to access, and education. Despite improvement efforts, racial disparities in oral health still exist in commmunites of color across the nation. Oral health is an important and often overlooked aspect of general human health and quality of life, which is what makes further work in this area crucial.