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Halloween is just behind us.  We often hear that this day is a dentist's best friend.  The candy will certainly cause tooth decay.  The other hard candies might break a tooth.  Amazingly we see very little dental health change due to Halloween.

If Halloween is our best friend, then soda, or sweetened beverages, is our worst enemy.  It wasn't long ago that we saw kids with few or no cavities.  That trend in certain age groups dramatically changed.  It is not uncommon for us to see someone six months after a good check-up who now has multiple cavities.  The cause... sweetened and acidic beverages.

For a variety of reasons, people have been consuming more and more sweetened beverages over the past decade.  In 2001, Americans consumed more than 56 gallons of soda per person.  That equals about one and a half cans of soda each day per  person.(1) Soda companies have made exclusive contracts with local schools in exchange for school activity funding.  Without funding, certain activities may be dropped.  Now, the average teenage boy drinks 81 gallons of soft drinks per year while the average teenage girl drinks 61 gallons.(2) Strong marketing and our lifestyles will certainly continue to increase consumption.

But this is not limited to teenagers.  Adults, too, are starting the morning with a soda and maybe another one or two throughout the day.  Sipping a coffee with sugar or flavored sports drink may be just as bad.

So what makes these drinks so bad?  It's not just the sugar.  However, there is a large amount of sugar in most soft drinks.  Some drinks have more than 30 grams/serving.  This is approximately 8 teaspoons or more per can.  Mountain Dew has the worst reputation but Coca-Cola, Barq's Root Beer, Orange Slice, and Lipton's Iced Tea are much worse.  Decay occurs when bacteria in the mouth feed on the sugar and secrete acid which dissolves the teeth.

Many drinks also contain phosphoric or citric acid.  To enhance the flavor of diet drinks which do not have sugar, different acids are used to "sweeten" them.  Some soft drinks have a pH, or acidity, close to battery acid.  This acid again dissolves enamel causing a "cavity".  For more information about different drinks, ask us about the "Sip and Snack All Day? Risk decay!" brochure from the American Dental Association. 

Many of our patients have switched from drinking soft drinks to water.  Water is healthy, right?  Tap water is, but many are consuming bottled, purified, filtered, or flavored water.  Many of the filtration processes also remove the fluoride found in water which helps prevent decay.  In addition, the flavored waters usually contain citric acid which we've described earlier.  Be careful what type of water you drink and read the label.

The continual sugar or acid bath to our teeth when sipping these drinks is worse than consuming the same serving quickly.  In fact, tooth exposure to Coca-Cola for one hour has been found to reduce tooth hardness and cause enamel irregularities.  It takes approximately 32 glasses of water to neutralize this acid.  (3) Imagine what happens when sipping on that extra large soda while at school, work or riding in the car?

Here are some tips to decrease your risk of cavities:

1.  Drink carbonated soft drinks and sweetened liquids (like fruit juice) in moderation.

2.  Drink fluoridated water and use fluoride toothpaste.

3.  Swish out your mouth with water to dilute the sugar and acid.

4.  Use a straw to keep sugars and acids away from your teeth.

5.  Never consume soft drinks or juice at bedtime.  (The liquid pools in your mouth and coats your tongue and teeth.)

6.  Throw the cap away to prevent ongoing sipping.

7.  Read labels- sweetened drinks are high in sugar.

8.  Get regular dental cleanings to remove plaque (bacteria) build-up on your teeth. (4)

(1), (3), (4) “Soft Drinks: Hard on Teeth” by Erickson, Alevizos, and Rindelaub. Northwest Dentistry: March-April2001. Pgs 15-19.
(2) “Snack and Sip All Day? Risk decay!” American Dental Association, 2008

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Below is a reprint of an article from the Wisconsin Dental Association’s publication calledTongue ‘n’ Cheek…and Teeth, too from Fall 2011:

Toothpaste: A brief history...

The development of toothpaste began as a long ago as 500-300 B.C. in China and India.  According to Chinese history, a learned man, Huang-Ti, studied the care of teeth and claimed different types of pain felt in the mouth could be cured by sticking gold and silver needles into different parts of the jaw and gum.  Theories such as this led to the development of dental cream.  

First attempts included using abrasive substances like crushed bone and egg or oyster shells to clean debris from teeth. Tooth powders were the first noticeable advance and were made upof elements like powdered charcoal or bark with flavoring agents. The substance was appliedto teeth using a simple stick.
Toothpowder or dentrifice was first available in Britain in the late 18th century. It came in aceramic pot and was available either as a powder or paste. Rich people applied it with brushes,while the poor used their fingers. Modern toothpastes were developed in the 1800s. Adentist called Peabody was the first to blend soap into toothpaste in 1824. Chalk was addedto toothpaste in the 1850s by Dr. John Harris, who opened the first dental school in the UnitedStates.
The first mass-produced, pleasant-smelling toothpaste in a jar occurred in 1873. In 1892, Dr.Washington Sheffield of Connecticut dispensed toothpaste in collapsible tubes and called it “Dr.Sheffield’s Crème Dentrifice”. Advancements in synthetic detergents after World War II ledto replacing soap in toothpaste with emulsifying agents such as sodium lauryl sulphate andsodium ricinoleate.
Fluoride was added to toothpaste for the first time in the 1960s and soluble calcium fluoridebecame a common additive in the 1980s. Only for the last 30 years has toothpaste containedcalcium and fluoride—two ingredients important to building strong teeth and protecting themfrom decay.

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Adults Invited to Join the Fun!!!

Many of you may have noticed the giant stuffed animals in the office.  All kids are invited to enter the drawing to "adopt" our soft, fluffy pets every three months.  We have many adults who've asked, "Where's our prize" Well, here it is!  

During the first week of January, we will be drawing the the winner of "Beat the Winter Blahs".  It is a one night stay at the Tundra Lodge water park in Green Bay, passes to the water park and a gift certificate for pizza at the hotel that night. Any adults may enter.  For those adults who had appointments in November up to the point of this newsletter will be automatically entered.  You may enter once any time you are in the office.

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Thank you,

To all those patients who have referred friends and family to our practice, we thank you for your trust and confidence in us.  It is a delight to know and care for those close to you and is the primary reason we continue to grow.

We wish you a Happy Holiday Season.  Please visit our website www.greatdentalexpressions.com, for up-to-date information.  Feel free to pass along our newsletter to others.  If you would like a paper copy, please contact the office.

Sincerely,

Drs. Robert and Heather Heil