Soft drinks 'not bad for teeth'

Looking after your teeth will help protect against problems

Teenagers' liking for soft drinks is not linked to dental cavities, American researchers have suggested.

Data was taken from a government National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of 15,000 people.

Researchers from the Virginia Tech Center for Food and Nutrition Policy looked at the data to see if there was an association between soft drink consumption and dental cavities.

On average, a US teenager drinks approximately one can of carbonated drink per day.

If you're sensible about how much you're drinking and taking care of your teeth, you're not likely to have a problem.

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The researchers found that regular consumption of fizzy drinks like cola or lemonade was not linked with dental cavities in any age group aside from adults between 25 to 40 - a link they could not explain.

But UK dental and nutrition experts said there was strong evidence linking sweetened and carbonated drinks to tooth decay and erosion.

Check-ups

The US research is being presented to the annual meeting of the American College of Nutrition.

Although there was no age link, the researchers, led by Dr Maureen Storey, of Virginia Tech, found people in the 17 to 40 age group who had more income and education had fewer cavities than those with less.

And in over 40s, African-Americans and Mexican-Americans had fewer dental cavities than Caucasians.

Women were found to have four to five more dental cavities, on average, than men.

Dr Storey added: "The biggest thing we found is that people need to take care of their teeth.

"That's the strongest relationship between whether you brush your teeth, regarding getting cavities."

"The message is if you're sensible about how much you are drinking and you're taking care of your teeth, you're not likely to have a problem.

"But if you're going overboard with anything, even if it's apple juice, and you're not taking care of your teeth, you're going to have problems."

'Evidence of link'

A spokesman for the British Dental Association said: "There is a good evidence base to show that sweetened or carbonated drinks, and pure fruit juices, are linked to caries (tooth decay) and erosion of dental enamel (loss of tooth surface).

"We note that this new report appears to say nothing about the link between soft drinks and erosion."

He recommended milk, water, and unsweetened tea and coffee as the best drinks for teeth.

But he added: "We are not saying that people should never have sweet or fizzy drinks, only that they should be using them sensibly."

A spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association said: "This research goes against most other research.

"The advice remains to try not to expose your teeth to sugar too many times a day."