Dental updates from Dr. Mckeever.

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SODA POP MOUTH

Recently, it was found that obesity took its place as the number one cause of disease in this country. If that statistic isn't frightening enough, consider a new study that found that any child born after the year 2000 has a 30% chance of becoming diabetic! At this time, 15% of American kids are overweight and, based upon dietary trends, this percentage is due to rise dramatically. Last year, there were 51 million school hours lost in the U.S. due to dental disease which is caused, primarily, by the same process as obesity - a poor diet.

Lately, there has been a lot of press given to vending machines in the schools. A bill was introduced in the Oklahoma State Senate that would remove vending machines in elementary schools; it did not get out of committee. Those senators against this bill think that it is better to let local school boards "control" the problem. In Oklahoma, only the Talequah school district has had the guts to get rid of these machines. And, as long as the soft drink companies pay money for the "pouring rights" in these districts, it ain't gonna happen on a large scale. If this isn't blood money I don't know what is. The eventual health care costs paid by every tax payer in this state totally negates any talk of this being a "local" problem. The amount of dental work paid for by the Medicaid program alone in this state is well over 20 million dollars a year and the only reason it's not a lot more is that there are not enough dentists to provide care for all of those eligible (only 14% of eligibles received treatment in 2002). Dental care is only 0.8% of the total Medicaid bill which is approaching a billion dollars.. A "local problem"? I don't think so.

When I was a kid it was milk or nothing at school. Soft drinks were an occasional treat and that was at home or at a movie. Now soft drinks have become a daily habit for a growing number of people, especially kids, teens and young adults. A steady diet of soft drinks is a leading cause of tooth decay. (I might say at this point that tooth decay has made a big comeback after years of decline and many adults that have this disease are also "pop addicts".) And it is not just the sugar in these drinks. It is the acids in the fizz that eat up tooth enamel. Here's how it works:

*sugar in pop (and in other refined carbohydrates) provide a substrate by which the bacteria in the plaque on the teeth can form acids.

*acids in soft drinks, whether they contain sugar or not, weakens tooth enamel

*the acid attacts your teeth and lasts about 20 minutes

*the acid attact starts over with every sip

*your tooth enamel (the hard, outer layer) is dissolved away

*bacteria lying in the plaque film on your teeth (which make acids of their own) then bore into the inner layer of tooth which is softer.

My mommy used to tell me that, if there's not anything good in what you offer, don't do it. The school systems as well as the legislature should heed this advice.
The little money derived from dispensing junk food to kids costs a lot more down the line.

Here are some of the relative acidities (pH) of some liquids. The lower the number the more corrosive:
pH
water 7.00
Sprite 3.42
Diet Dr. Pepper 3.41
Gatorade 2.95
Dr. Pepper 2.92
Coke Classic 2.53
Pepsi 2.49
Battery acid 1.00

Drink up! The Oklahoma Legislature has made a great contribution to the "Dental Provider Full Employment Act". My profession hates this problem and we hope all of our patients put pressure on their local school boards to do as Talequah did and get rid of the machines in all of the schools.
posted by Steve at 5:05 PM