Gummy bears that fight plaque

[Celebration]

http://www.physorg.com/news136181023.html

The tooth-protecting sugar substitute xylitol has been incorporated into gummy bears to produce a sweet snack that may prevent dental problems. Research published today in the open access journal BMC Oral Health describes how giving children four of the xylitol bears three times a day during school hours results in a decrease in the plaque bacteria that cause tooth decay.

Xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol that is frequently used as a sweetener. It has been shown to reduce levels of the harmful mutans streptococci (MS) bacteria that are known to cause tooth decay. While xylitol chewing gums are available, they are not considered to be suitable for younger children.

This research was led by Kiet A. Ly from the University of Washington. He says, "For xylitol to be successfully used in oral health promotion programmes amongst primary-school children, an effective means of delivering xylitol must be identified. Gummy bears would seem to be more ideal than chewing gum."

The children in the study were given four bears three times a day, containing different concentrations of xylitol. The results show that after six weeks of gummy bear snacking, the levels of harmful MS bacteria in the children's plaque was significantly reduced. According to Ly "Based on our findings, it is feasible to develop a clinical trial of a gummy-based caries prevention programme. Such a study is now being carried out in the East Cleveland primary school district (Ohio, USA)."

[cliffordu]

1. Now the health police have wrecked candy. Sigh.

[trotsky]

2. I tried xylitol as a sweetener.

The only thing I noticed is that it tends to have a pronounced "minty" taste/feel in the mouth. For mint gum, this is obviously no problem and in fact a benefit, enhancing the flavor. However in sweetening other items (I tried it in tea), it just doesn't taste right. Hopefully they overcame that limitation in making the gummy bears - it would be a great way to help improve the health of children's teeth.

[BuddhaGirl]

3. I recently switched to a xylitol based

toothpaste and mouthwash...I really like them. I also now only chew xylitol-sweetened gum. There is no difference at all in the taste compared to sugar-sweetened gum, at least to me.

[Tumbulu]

4. My dentist has been very excited about Xylitol for a few years now.

We chew the gum and I hope that it helps, it tastes great.