Association of Smartphone Addiction with Obesity, Dental Caries and Periodontal Status among 12–15 year old School going Children of Moradabad City

AbstractIntroduction: Smartphones offer extensive digital access but excessive smartphone use among adolescents can lead to addictive behaviors, sedentary lifestyles, increased obesity risk, and poorer oral health, including dental caries and periodontal problems.Objectives: To determine the association of Smart Phone addiction with Obesity, Dental caries and Periodontal status among 12 to 15 years old school going children of Moradabad city.Methodology: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 1,309 schoolchildren aged 12–15 years selected from randomly chosen schools in Moradabad. Smartphone addiction was assessed using the Smartphone Addiction Scale Short Version (SAS-SV). Oral health was evaluated using WHO Oral Health Survey Methods (1997).Results: Smartphone addiction was identified in 63.6% of participants. A highly significant association was found between smartphone addiction and age, gender, BMI, dental caries, plaque accumulation, and gingival bleeding (p < 0.001), with addicted adolescents showing higher rates of pre-obesity, obesity, and poorer oral health outcomes.Conclusion: Responsible smartphone use, healthy lifestyle habits, and proper oral hygiene through the combined efforts of parents, educators, and healthcare professionals is essential to improve adolescent health and well being.