Dentists analyze sugary drinks and tooth wear; weight screening at the dental office
CHICAGO, Just days after the U.S. government released its new dietary guidelines advising Americans to reduce their sugar intake, new research from The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) shows that sugary drinks are associated with erosive tooth wear among teenagers in Mexico, where sugary beverages are a dietary staple.
“The oral health of children is always top of mind, and we’ve seen recently that sugar is a leading problem when it comes to their overall health and dental health,” said JADA editor Michael Glick, D.M.D. “This study shows an association between high intake of sweet drinks and poor oral health. This issue needs to be taken seriously.”
The study authors issued a food questionnaire to teens between the ages 14 to 19 living in Mexico regarding the intake of fruit juice, sports drinks and sweet carbonated drinks, among other food items. The teenagers were then examined for erosive tooth wear. Results of the study showed that the overall prevalence of erosive tooth wear was 31.7 percent, with sweet carbonated drinks – soda – causing the most erosion.
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For more information about these studies please visit JADA.ada.org. To learn about how nutrition affects the health of children’s teeth, visit MouthHealthy.org/nutrition.
