Rabu, 02 Mei 2012

Energy drinks are destroying teenagers' teeth

Energy drinks are destroying teenagers' teeth

  • Enamel damage apparent after only five days exposure to sports or energy drinks
  • Energy drinks caused twice as much damage as sports drinks

By Daily Mail Reporter

PUBLISHED: 04:36 EST, 2 May 2012 | UPDATED: 09:31 EST, 2 May 2012

Energising: Caffeinated drinks may give a temporary boost but play havoc with your teeth

Energising: Caffeinated drinks may give a temporary boost but play havoc with your teeth

Teenagers' love of energy drinks is taking a terrible toll on their teeth, scientists have warned.

A study published in the Academy of General Dentistry charted an alarming increase in the consumption of both energy and sports drinks among young adults in the U.S. who use them to help get through the day.

But they said the habit is causing irreversible damage to teeth as the high acidity levels in the drinks erode tooth enamel, the glossy outer layer of the tooth

In some cases it can take as little as five days for the eroding effect to begin.

'Young adults consume these drinks assuming that they will improve their sports performance and energy levels and that they are 'better' for them than soda,' said lead author Dr Poonam Jain, from Southern Illinois University.

'Most of these patients are shocked to learn that these drinks are essentially bathing their teeth with acid.'

Researchers examined the acidity levels in 13 sports drinks and nine energy drinks. They found that the acidity levels can vary between brands of beverages and flavors of the same brand.

To test the effect of the acidity levels, the researchers immersed samples of human tooth enamel in each beverage for 15 minutes, followed by immersion in artificial saliva for two hours. This cycle was repeated four times a day for five days, and the samples were stored in fresh artificial saliva at all other times.

'This type of testing simulates the same exposure that a large proportion of American teens and young adults are subjecting their teeth to on a regular basis when they drink one of these beverages every few hours,' said Dr Jain.

Monster Energy Drink Red Bull 250ml Energy Drink

Sweet-tooth: A can of Monster Energy contains 54g of sugar while a can of Red Bull contains 27g of sugar. They were two of the nine energy drinks tested in the study. The American Heart Association recommends having no more than 30g of sugar a day

The researchers found that damage to enamel was evident after only five days of exposure to sports or energy drinks, although energy drinks showed a significantly greater potential to damage teeth than sports drinks.

In fact, the authors found that energy drinks caused twice as much damage to teeth as sports drinks.

With a reported 30 to 50 per cent of U.S. teens consuming energy drinks, and as many as 62 per cent drinking at least one sports drink per day, it is important to educate parents and young adults about the downside of these drinks.

Damage caused to tooth enamel is irreversible, and without the protection of enamel, teeth become overly sensitive, prone to cavities, and more likely to decay.

'Teens regularly come into my office with these types of symptoms, but they don't know why,' said Academy of General Dentistry spokesman Jennifer Bone.

'We review their diet and snacking habits and then we discuss their consumption of these beverages. They don't realize that something as seemingly harmless as a sports or energy drink can do a lot of damage to their teeth.'

Dr Bone recommends that her patients minimise their intake of sports and energy drinks. She also advises them to chew sugar-free gum or rinse the mouth with water following consumption of the drinks.

'Both tactics increase saliva flow, which naturally helps to return the acidity levels in the mouth to normal,' she says.

Also, patients should wait at least an hour to brush their t eeth after consuming sports and energy drinks. Otherwise, says Dr Bone, they will be spreading acid onto the tooth surfaces, increasing the erosive action. 

Here's what other readers have said. Why not add your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards.

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The bacteria in your mouth consume sugar and the waste product is acid. So the drink it self is acidic and to make it worse the sugar is being converted to acid. They suggest chewing sugarless gum because the bacteria in your mouth can't consume sugar substitutes, so they can't make more acid.

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These drinks are full of caffeine and as such are not suitable for children. When I worked for a major supermarket we were told not to sell them to under 16's.

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Let's not forget the affect of energy drinks on the heart. With energy drinks only being out a few years, has anyone else noticed an increased trend of Cardiac Arrests?

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The problem as well with these energy drinks is that some of them are dirty cheap. In Tesco they sell one for 37p! That is even less than a normal fizzy drink. I saw a 9 year old boy drinking one the other day. We spend billions and billions on national security yet we can't spend money on our health and education. Absolute madness.

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Energy drinks have only been around for a few years. Who knows what the long term effects of regular consumption will be? The children most likely to drink them are the ones who don't have a regular bed time and aren't encouraged to eat breakfast; they feel tired in the morning and want a quick 'pick me up'. Not surprisingly, it is these caffeine-addled children who disrupt lessons at school and find classes 'boring' because they are unable to concentrate. Once again, it is children from less educated and less well-off families who suffer.

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I have to admit the day i moved home and very exhausted was the first time i had used an energy drink. I got the sugar free version too. I then became almost addicted being a mum of 4 kids under 7 lol. But i soon got fed up of relying on them tried a few earlier nights. I can proudly say I now rarely drink them hehe x

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Don't forget these energy drinks are drunk by lazy kids who then become FAT lazy kids with bad teeth.

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I don't know what is meant by energy or sports drinks, or what the difference between the two is, and the article doesn't explain.Caffeine wouldn't damage teeth, but sugar does and it sounds as though there are acids like phosphoric acid in them that does even more damage than sugar? Is fizzy diet lemonade a sports or energy drink or neither? I know the two percent lemon juice is acidic, but how does that rank for damaging teeth against the phosphoric acid in colas?

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I notice they say chew sugarless gum. I have read articles on Sugarless gum that they cause tooth decay also. its the artificial sweetener that does it.

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- James 001, West of Nowhere, 2/5/2012 11:11 GM crops are only 1 way there trying to keep the world population down

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