The Effect of Sugar-Free Gum on the Salivary pH of Children after Consuming Sweetened Milk

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to monitor the changes in saliva pH after consuming a package of sweetened and chocolate-flavored milk, then studying the saliva pH changes after consuming a sugar-free gum sweetened with xylitol and sorbitol, in children with different additionally dental caries at the age of 3-5 years after conducting a laboratory study of milk to measure its acidity and the amount of added sugars and proteins to it.
Materials and Methods: : A chemical analytical laboratory studied the pH and the amount of sugar and proteins added to milk (sweetened and chocolate flavored milk from (Hawa Al Sham Company). And a clinical observational study, of 30 children aged 3-5 years to find out the change in saliva pH after drinking sweetened and chocolate milk, then the effect of chewing sugar-free gum sweetened with xylitol and sorbitol on the pH.

Results: The results showed that the value of the significance level is smaller than (P < 05.0), which means at the 95% confidence level, there are statistically significant binary differences in the salivary pH values   between the two time periods before the test, two minutes after consuming milk and saliva pH values   after two minutes of eating gum were greater than before the test and two minutes after consuming milk.

Conclusions: Drinking sweetened milk decrease a salivary pH below the resting value, but it did not fall below the critical value (5.5), which means milk remains a non-cariogenic substance even if sucrose and flavorings are added to it. The sugar-free chewing gum sweetened with sorbitol and xylitol had a role in raising the salivary pH values   above the resting values, and have the positive effect in preventing dental caries.