The SO and I have been debating the drink limitations for the children - I come from a more strict background when it comes to sodas and sugary drinks.
When raising my children, they were very seldom alloted a soda and even then, it was in moderation (small child-size drinks) AND only the lighter colored ones such as Sprite was allowed (I encouraged iced tea, lemonaide, milk, and water). The SO allows his children up to 2 sodas a day of any kind (though recently I have gotten him to agree to the lighter sodas).
I am willing to compromise to 1 light colored soda a day but SO doesnt have the buy-in of the effects soda has on teeth. I explained to him that the acid and sugar contained in soda is very hard on teeth - especially on little ones who arent very good about brushing and flossing. I also let him know that darker colored sodas - even diets - are usually worse than ones such as Sprite per my dentist, and also my ex’s sister who recently graduated dental school.
Is there any truth to this tale?
What are the breakdowns of soda vs juice vs koolaid vs tea vs coffee vs milk, etc?
What is an realistic amount to allow a child per day/week?
*children are of ages 16, 13, 9 and do not have the most disciplined dental practices (do not always brush & rarely floss)
I read this http://www.doctorspiller.com/Tooth_Decay.htm when my wife and I were wondering about the effects of milk on our daughters’ teeth. If you search for sugar and caries in Google you’ll find many more useful sites.
Yeah, according to Dr. Spiller, it’s pretty much just the sugar that causes tooth decay – the acids in soda are water soluble and your saliva washes them right off your teeth, but sugar causes sticky plaque that results in enamel dissolving.
Juice and soda, therefore, are bad for your teeth. Diet soda isn’t.
So those sodas that contain both phosphoric and carbolic acid as well as sugar does not do any more damage than those w/out?
I read WebMD articles on the subject and a few others here and there, but I am interested in statistics, and proof that acids do or do not contribute to the breakdown of enamal and if sodas containing such acids put a person at even a higher risk of cavities.
Both Coca-Cola and Sprite have caramel color as the third ingredient, so I think the big difference is the amount. I think you’d be better off drinking diet soda than the regular versions of either light or dark sodas. But a recent study links the consumption of diet soda to the development of “metabolic syndrome,” so there are even dangers there.
I read somewhere that root beer is actually the soda which is easiest on your teeth. I don’t know how that makes sense considering that they’re all basically sugar, water, artificial colors, and artificial flavors, but there you go.
I’ve read in lots and lots of places that the color of the soda is irrelevant to tooth decay, though. It’s a myth.
I would assume so, but probably not as much. IANAD, though.
As for the OP, your children are older than mt little boys aged 6 and 2, but we hardly ever let them drink pop, as they already drink an enormous amount of apple and orange juice and don’t require any extra sugar in their diet!
My uncle who specializes in children’s teeth explained it to me. It won’t matter how much sugar they consume, if it has sugar. The acid will be produced from the bacteria. every time they consume sugar it starts the cycle over. What you have to do is to limit the number of times they consume it and to a short period. No sucking soda for an hour. It’s mostly the sugar feeding the bacteria, and not the acidity of the drink that is the problem. Notice the acid does do some damage to the enamel all by it’s self. Try to have them brush afterward if they can.
Isn’t there a grade school science demonstration that involves soaking an egg (hard boiled, I believe) in cola for…a week? A few days? It’s supposed to show the effects of soda on your tooth enamel since egg shell is sort of like enamel.
Perhaps you and the SO should do an experiment where you soak hard-boiled eggs in cola, clear soda, Kool Aid and milk for a few days, then see what they look like afterwards and what happens when you brush them.
And of course (and not that I don’t think it’s healthier to keep children from drinking soda of any sort), I think that it’s worth noting that these are relative risks. I drink and have always drunk lots of soda, had less than good brushing habits as a child, and only this past year went to the dentist for a checkup and cleaning for the first time in a decade. I’ve never had a cavity.
I have a sister-in-law who claims that sincer her 90-year-old aunt has been a lifelong smoker and has never contracted cancer, that proves smoking doesn’t cause cancer.
Every summer I spend two weeks in rural El Salvador with a team of medical researchers. We’re studying the dental health of the children in the remote parts of the countryside. Over the last 10 years something really spectacularly bad has happened and most children have been losing their baby teeth before they reach 5 years of age.
After three years of study the culprit has become quite clear: the streams have become so polluted by unregulated industry that they are undrinkable. The cheapest alternative is, you guessed it, Coke. Cheaper than milk, cheaper than bottled water. Mothers have been putting it in baby bottles.
My teen children were with me a couple of summers ago and it cured them of the soda habit immediately. At least some good has come of this disaster.
I never said that soda isn’t bad for teeth on average (which is why I added the part about it being healthier that the children not start). What I AM saying is that drinking soda is not a guarantee of bad dental health.
Here’s what I am thinking after reading more info on soda/sugar effects on teeth as well as acid:
Kids want a soda that bad, they can drink diet - preferrably rootbeer or cream soda or even gingerale, but I’m willing to compromise to 2 cans a day on weekends/summers. I always told my own kids that when they start paying for their own dental bill & their own food, then they can have whatever they want. I think that’s fair.
I didnt start drinking soda regularly until the 80’s and the only options I was allowed (unless I bought my own and hid it) was diet. I sure as hell didnt die from it and I preferred diet to reg for a long long time… I actually miss it. Unfortunately, my stomach will not tolerate the artificial sweetners in diet sodas & can only handle an occassional one.
But, we’ll see what the SO has to say, maybe some of those tooth-decay pictures will be enough to encourage him to agree to one can/day or maybe even diet soda only.
Dark means nothing, really- other than the fact many darker sodas have caffiene, which you may not want your kids getting into.
Sodas aren’t good for the teeth. But neither are fruit juices- some of which also have acids. I have known some kids that lived on “juice boxes” and had serious dental problems.
Some sodas *in moderation *should be OK. Harmonious Discord’s post is pretty well spot on. Sugar-free gum chewed after any sugar should help. Brushing would be better, but we know that ain’t gonna work.
A colleague of mine had a son in his mid teens who had lots of cavities. His problem, according to his dentist, was ‘nursing’ sodas: sipping one all day, which supposedly does more harm downing them quickly.
I have also heard this. I am a sipper - it takes me all day to drink a soda, sometimes 2 days. My teeth are not the best and never have been. Now that I’m an adult and decided that I really dont like the dentist, I brush a couple of times a day but still struggle with the flossing. I just told the SO I was considering switching to dt rootbeer & cream soda and getting rid of the dr pepper addiction. Again, not sure how I will be able to handle the diet but if it doesnt work out I can always go to reg rootbeer/cream soda.
SO’s 13yr old indicated he liked diet soda of any kind, so I am willing to adjust to 2cans/day if it’s diet (and preferrably low in caffeine).
From the other side of the anecdotes - new dentists ask me whether or not I’m bulemic. The enamel is worn away, most likely from soda.
I had perfect teeth until I left home and started drinking soda all the time. Then came cavities for the first time and the dental pain - that I noticed but couldn’t figure out a reason for until one dentist asked whether I was bulemic (no) and then whether I drank soda (yes). According to that dentist, the phosphoric acid was worse than citric acid and so I stopped drinking stuff with phosphoric acid in it and cut way back on the citric. And my teeth stopped hurting all the time.
Tooth decay from soft drinks is entirely due to sugar content. Acid content is irrelevant.
Tropicana orange juice has 22 grams of sugar in 240 mL 7UP has 25 grams of sugar in 240 mL
American Coca Cola Classic has 27 grams of carbohydrates (which we may presume to be sugar, since other forms of carbs are unlikely) in 240 mL Pepsi Cola also has 27 grams of sugar per 240 mL Ocean Spray Cranberry Cocktail has 33.8 grams of sugar per 243 mL
From a tooth decay potential perspective, there’s very little difference between fruit juice and plain ol’ soda.
Not sure if this is really relevant, but I would suggest Kool-Aid made with Splenda. Tastes great and has no calories or caffeine. And is a lot cheaper than juice or soda.
