Caries and Diet

Question 1

Which type of caries is most associated with dietary factors?

Answer 1

Smooth surface caries

Question 2

What is the most important interaction in the caries process?

Answer 2

Bacteria-substrate interaction

Question 3

T/F - Nutritional status is strongly correlated with caries rates

Answer 3

False

Question 4

T/F - Pre-industrialized societies have low caries rates, and they are primarily confined to root surfaces and fissures

Answer 4

True

Question 5

What happens as refined foods are adopted?

Answer 5

Caries rates climb

Question 6

According to the WHO, how much sugar should be consumed a day?

Answer 6

It should be no more than 10% of total calories consumed (~50 g or 12 teaspoons a day)

Question 7

Where are most of the sugars we consumed?

Answer 7

Hidden in processed foods

Examples: 40 g in soda or 4 g in ketchup

Question 8

How and why were caries rates effected during wartime England?

Answer 8

Dropped during the war (sugar was rationed)

Jumped back up after

Question 9

What did the Vipeholm study tell us about sugar intake around mealtime, and its effect on caries?

Answer 9

The more sugar, the more cariogenic
Sugar consumed between meals caused more caries than sugar consumed at mealtime
The stickier the sugary foods, the worse the caries rates

Question 10

What did the Hopewood study tell us about caries rates in institutionalized children?

Answer 10

Children that were institutionalized had lower caries rates than children that went to state schools due to strict dietary restrictions of natural vegetarian diets that were low in refined carbs
Their caries rates spiked to school-level children once they left the communal homes

Question 11

How does sweet preference change with sugar exposure?

Answer 11

The more sugar children eat, the more they have a preference for it
Higher threshold for sweetness is correlated with greater sugar consumption and caries
Lower sensitivity to sweetness is correlated with lower caries rates

Question 12

What is the leading source of added sugars in young American’s diets?

Answer 12

Soft drinks

75% of teenage boys drink 3 cans a day, 2/3 of teenage girls drink 2 cans a day

Question 13

At what age is the most rapid increase in consumption of carbonated drinks?

Answer 13

8

Question 14

There is increased caries association with what types of drinks?

Answer 14

Sugared soda
Powdered beverages
100% juice (to a lesser extent)

Question 15

How much juice should children be limited to a day?

Answer 15

4-6 oz

Question 16

How much dairy should children get per day?

Answer 16

2 or more servings of dairy

Question 17

Are sweeteners cariogenic?

Answer 17

No

Question 18

What effect does xylitol gum have on caries rates.

Answer 18

It lowers caries rates - but it likely has less to do with what is in the gum, as much as it has to do with simply stimulating salivary flow

Question 19

Aspartame

Answer 19

Found in Equal and Nutrasweet
Dipeptide of phenylalanine and aspartic acid
Approximately 200x sweeter than sugar
Clean, sweet taste
Digested in such small amounts that it can be considered calorie-free
Not heat stable, so it can’t be used in cooking

Question 20

Saccharin

Answer 20

The original non-calorie sweetener - Sweet N Low
Some bitter after taste
Not metabolized, so it’s non-caloric and non-cariogenic
Used in a wide variety of items, including toothpaste
Temperature stable
Causes bladder cancer in rodents, but seemingly safe to humans

Question 21

Acesulfame-K

Answer 21

Sunette or SweetOne
High-intensity, non-caloric sweetener approximately 200x sweeter than sucrose
Clean, sweet taste with no aftertaste
Not metabolized and is excreted unchanged
Temperature stable

Question 22

Stevia

Answer 22

Extract of the leaves of the stevia plant
Steviol glycoside
200x sweeter than sugar
Heat stable
Packaged with bulking agents
Non-cariogenic and non-caloric

Question 23

Addition of water does what to caries rates?

Answer 23

Lowers them

Question 24

How does starch compare to sugar?

Answer 24

Starch is retained longer and produces more acid over time than sugar

Question 25

How does cooked starch compare to uncooked starch?

Answer 25

Cooked starch is more soluble and may be retained longer than unprocessed starch

Question 26

What foodstuffs can inhibit caries?

Answer 26

Xylitol (maybe)
Calcium
Phosphates
Fat
Casein phosphopeptide
Sodium bicarbonate
Carbamide

Question 27

How do phosphates inhibit caries?

Answer 27

Buffer

Crystal stabilization - reducing solubility by protecting Ca

Question 28

How does sodium bicarbonate and carbamide inhibit caries?

Answer 28

Raise pH

Question 29

How do natural sugars in fruits and vegatbles effect caries?

Answer 29

No scientific evidence showing that they’re harmful