2.3. Salivary Sample Collection and Analysis
All participants were instructed to collect the salivary sample after an overnight fast, between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m., two hours after brushing their teeth. Saliva was collected using the passive drool method (unstimulated saliva). This protocol is the most recommended method, as most analytes can be easily quantified by traditional quantification methods [The levels of cytokines IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α, MCP-1, and insulin were evaluated via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using a commercially available MILLIPLEX