With Summer here, people are finally pulling their swim suits out from the back of their dressers and trying them on again. Many of us will soon see that Winter, and all its treats, have taken a toll on our waistlines, and there is nothing wrong with that. We all have a little bit of extra fluff come the beginning of the warm months.
However, one thing many people turn to in order to combat this is making the switch to sugar-free drinks and snacks. Bearing this in mind, dental implant provider Dr. Jeffrey Hoos and the rest of his staff here at Brush and Floss Dental Center have decided to explain why those diet treats might actually be doing you more harm than good.
Let’s take a closer look.
Artificial Sweeteners Are Wreaking Havoc on Smiles
You might be wondering how in the world a snack without any sugar in it could possibly be bad for you or your mouth. If there is not sugar in it you should be able to eat and drink as much of it as you want, right?
Wrong.
Take a look at this conclusive study from the University of Melbourne’s Oral Health Cooperative Research Centre. Studies concluded that sugar-free, artificially sweetened drinks can soften your tooth enamel by thirty to fifty percent.
Yikes! How?
It all has to do with the acidic additives that help these treats achieve their sweet taste regardless of not containing sugar.
This study included twenty-three different types of sugar-free drinks like diet coke and sugar-free sports drinks such as Gatorade. The results were staggering in their consistency. Researchers found that due to these beverages low pH levels and acidic additives they can and will damage the enamel covering your teeth if consumed too often.
“Many people are not aware that while reducing your sugar intake does reduce your risk of dental decay, the chemical mix of acids in some foods and drinks can cause the equally damaging condition of dental erosion,” explains professor Eric Reynolds, CEO of the Oral Health Cooperative Research Centre and one of the authors of this study. “In its early stages, erosion strips away the surface layers of tooth enamel. If it progresses to an advanced stage it can expose the soft pulp inside the tooth.”
This means that these acidic additives while being under the guise of tooth-friendly, can leave your teeth vulnerable to other types of infections which can be caused by what would have been considered normal use under different circumstances. Like eating lunch. All because your protective enamel barrier is compromised.
As an added bonus, the study also tested thirty-two different types of readily available sugar-free candies that you can find at any store. Researched noted that treats with a tangy taste were capable of doing the most damage because they contain both phosphoric and citric acid. It’s a double whammy.
“Many sugar-free confections, even some with ‘tooth friendly’ certification, contain high levels of citric acid and have erosive potential,” the researchers wrote in their notes.
Our suggestion is that you limit your consumption of sweets altogether. Many people have lost sight of what a treat actually is – A TREAT. They are meant to be eaten once in a while, and not multiple times a day. Also, simply because something claims to be sugar-free does not mean you are free to eat and drink as much of it as you please without consequence. If you do indulge, make it seldom and just eat the treats with natural sugar in them.
Until next time readers, keep smiling.