Soft Drinks and Oral Health - A Review

Soft drink consumption has increased dramatically across all demographic groups, especially among children and teenagers. Soft drinks have many potential health problems, including dental caries and enamel erosion. Soft drinks containing inherent acids and sugars have both acidogenic and cariogenic potential. Many studies showed a positive relationship between caries and dental erosion and the consumption of soft drinks. Compared with caries, dental erosion seems to have much stronger relationship with soft drinks. It is necessary to educate patients about the harmful effects of excessive soft drink consumption and to advise them with the following tips to prevent dental erosion and caries: limiting soft drinks intake, choosing the low erosive soft drinks, improving the drinking habit, avoiding brushing tooth within 1 hour after consuming acidic food, and using fluoride toothpaste.