Investigation of the relationship between athletes spiritual cortisol levels and oral dental health

It has become a necessity for athletes and coaches to prepare for competitions in the light of these scientific studies in order to increase athlete performance and take success to the top, where scientific studies aimed at increasing athlete performance have significantly shaped the athlete's life, seconds, split-seconds and grams are now important in success. The aim of the research is to examine the relationship between saliva cortisol levels and oral and dental health of national athletes. The sample group of the research consisted of athletes from different branches preparing for the Olympics in the Olympic centers. In the research, DMFT Index, Gingival Index, Plaque Index and which are oral and dental health scales applied by the World Health Organization, were used as data collection tools. In order to measure the cortisol levels of the athletes, saliva samples were taken and cortisol levels were examined before and after the competition. In our study, the age range of national athletes in different athletics branches is 16-28. DMFT, Gingival, Plaque score relationships were evaluated by conducting oral examinations of the athletes. Cortisol levels from saliva samples taken in 2 different time periods, before and after the competition, were measured using the ELISA method. The data were evaluated in the SPSS-26 program. When the cortisol hormone scores of active national athletes (in national team camps) before training (Pre-test Mean.=33.57ng/ml) and post-training (Post-test Mean.=56.54ng/ml) cortisol hormone scores were compared, a significant difference was found (X2(4)=151.347; p=.00). Additionally, when national athletes' salivary cortisol hormone levels and DMFT indexes were compared, a significant relationship was detected (p<.05). In addition, it was observed that there was a statistically significant relationship between the high cortisol levels of national athletes and their high gingival index values (Avg.=2.00) and plaque index values (Avg.=1.00) (X2(3)=122.611; p=.00 ). As a result, in this study, it was determined that active national athletes (n:43) showed significant differences in cortisol hormone levels measured after training compared to before training, and that the increased cortisol level negatively affected the DMFT, Gingival and Plaque index values of the athletes. Therefore, it has been observed that the oral health of athletes who train for long periods of time is negatively affected due to increased cortisol levels.