{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,27]],"date-time":"2026-02-27T10:06:15Z","timestamp":1772186775466,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":18,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,24]],"date-time":"2026-02-24T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1771891200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Children"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Families, including mothers and fathers, create a safe, stable environment if they work together in setting rules for their children. Research on parenting style among Saudi Arabian parents in Riyadh is lacking. Analyzing and assessing these factors will facilitate the formulation of evidence-based methods to enhance parenting practices, which is the main aim of this study. Methodology: This cross-sectional study conducted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, explored the parenting style of primary school parents using a validated and widely used questionnaire. Clinical examination for the prevalence of children\u2019s dental caries was performed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Additionally, parents were asked to complete a structured questionnaire to evaluate their child\u2019s oral health by using the WHO\u2019s Oral Health Questionnaire for Children. Results: In the present study, the survey was completed by 506 parents from 14 schools and the authoritative parenting style emerged as the most common among participants, with 88.7% for mothers and 81.4% for fathers. The findings indicated there was no evidence of an association between mothers\u2019 and fathers\u2019 authoritative parenting style with the prevalence of dental caries [OR = 1.021, 95% CI: 0.79, 1.31, p = 0.871], [OR = 0.940, 95% CI: 0.71, 1.22, p = 0.653], respectively. However, there was evidence of an association between mothers\u2019 authoritative parenting style and higher fruit consumption [OR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.028, 1.570, p = 0.027], meaning fruit consumption increased with higher authoritative style scores. Conclusions: The present study indicated that the authoritative parenting style was the most often reported among participants. This study found no evidence of an association between parenting style and the prevalence of dental caries or brushing frequency; however, a difference in fruit and vegetable consumption was seen, with increased intake linked to mothers\u2019 authoritative parenting style.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/children13030316","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,24]],"date-time":"2026-02-24T16:58:18Z","timestamp":1771952298000},"page":"316","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Parenting Style and Their Influence on Children\u2019s Dental Health in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Areej","family":"Alsiwat","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Dentistry, School of Medical Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1631-1730","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"George","family":"Kitsaras","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Dentistry, School of Medical Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Anne-Marie","family":"Glenny","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Dentistry, School of Medical Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0833-6591","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Haya","family":"Alayadi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dental Health Department, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 10219, Riyadh 11433, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0375-3118","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michaela","family":"Goodwin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Dentistry, School of Medical Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,24]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"19","DOI":"10.1016\/j.copsyc.2017.02.012","article-title":"Current research on parenting styles, dimensions, and beliefs","volume":"15","author":"Smetana","year":"2017","journal-title":"Curr. Opin. Psychol."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"202","DOI":"10.1037\/a0034390","article-title":"Neighborhood characteristics, parenting styles, and children\u2019s behavioral problems in Chinese American immigrant families","volume":"20","author":"Lee","year":"2014","journal-title":"Cult. Divers. Ethn. Minor. 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