The study, conducted by the Australian Institute for Health and Welfare (AIHW), also found that boys tend to develop more baby teeth than girls at any age, and girl's permanent teeth arrive earlier than a boy's.

The study didn't see any significant differences between the consumption of sugary foods from one gender to the next, which leads them to additionally conclude that cultural factors may account for the noted differences. "Certainly ... boys, in relation to their oral hygiene, start brushing later in life and brush their teeth less often than girls," researcher Jason Armfield told Australia's Herald Sun paper.

Additional findings suggested a strong link between childhood decay and later tooth troubles. The Herald Sun quoted Armfield as noting that "one of the best predictors of having decay in permanentteeth is having decay in baby teeth."

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