Just in time for Hallowe’en… Good news for candy lovers – and their parents – about new evidence that at least partially vindicates candy as the worst thing you can eat when it comes to dental decay. Turns out first place in the cavity sweepstakes goes to…
If you want your kids to grow up with beautiful teeth like these –
limit their sugary AND starchy foods NOW!
Since the end of the Second World War, at least, we’ve been bombarded by dentists with warnings against consuming sugar. Not just excess sugar – any sugar at all. The stuff has been traditionally condemned as the worst thing you can pout in your mouth if you want to avoid cavities….
That’s true, but…
… Now, researchers have confirmed there’s something worse – more likely to cause tooth decay. It’s just as popular as soda and candy. And it’s probably not what you think!
It’s starch – raw carbs – and it comes in many guises. Think: chips (of all kinds), fries, bread, cookies, cakes and crackers… Yes! Goldfish are not really your friends!
Why starch?
Because refined (processed) starches break down easily into simple sugars, which the bacteria in your mouth that cause tooth decay and gum disease just love, and thrive on.
“As a dentist, I actually see this more often than candy-related decay — and that surprises parents,” says DDS Catrise Austin, a New York City-based dentist. “When [we] chew crackers, those starches break down into simple sugars. The bacteria in the mouth feed on those sugars and produce acid. That acid lowers the pH in the mouth and starts dissolving enamel.”
But that’s not all
Starch sticks to your teeth, unlike sugar, which is readily water-soluble and can be whisked away by saliva and beverages you drink after eating something sugary.
And starchy snacks are often salty, as well. And that dries out your mouth. “[One] purpose of saliva is that it remineralizes the teeth,” DDS Fatima Khan of Riven Oral Care explains. Saliva flushes out part-icles in the mouth, neutralizes acid and brings the mouth’s pH balance back to normal. “When you have less saliva, it can lead to more cavities.”
Hard facts
A 2020 article in the European Journal of Oral Sciences surveyed 5 independent studies performed between 1970 and 2020, that examined the connection the consumption of starch-containing foods and tooth decay.
The findings were clear: Refined starch foods were just as bad, or worse, than sugar for causing tooth decay. The research team behind the 2020 paper recommended, “future research should investigate the effectiveness of interventions to change the dietary behaviour of high-frequency consumption of processed […] starch-containing foods, to decrease the risk of dental caries.”
My take
So… It appears that the absolute worst thing yuu can eat to cause tooth decay is… A Granola Bar! (pictured, top of page). Full of starch AND sugar, and designed to stick to your teeth!
I’ve long suspected the connection between starchy foods and tooth decay – precisely for the reas-ons the experts give. On a personal note, a former brother-in-law of mine used to run a bakery. He tasted everything before it was put out on the racks for sale. And his teeth were always just totally jammed up with starchy residue. Even after using his Waterpik 4 times a day!
~ Maggie J.