Diet Soda - Worse for Your Teeth?

the effects of diet soda on teeth

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Artificial Sweeteners are Not a Food Source for Bacteria

The same way our body cannot use artifical sweetners as a sugar source, bacteria in our mouth cannot use artificial sweetners in soda as a food source. The next logical assumption is that diet soda is therefore less harmful than its full sugar counterpart: regular soda. Not true.

Both Sugar and Acid Damage Teeth

There are no dental advantages to drinking diet soda, and absolutely no dental benefits. The Ohio Dental Association is fighting hard to debunk the myth about diet soda being a better alternative for your teeth. In a flyer they sent out to parents, the association said: While excessive sugar is not healthy, it’s the acid in diet and regular soda that can damage tooth enamel and cause cavities and tooth decay. Acid can begin to harm tooth enamel in only 20 minutes. The sweeteners used in diet sodas are much more potent than naturally occurring sugar. To counterbalance the extra sweetening power, soda makers make diet sodas more acidic.

If You Must Drink Soda

On a tangential note; the worst time to drink soda is when you are thirsty. Our saliva washes the acids from foods from our teeth, and when our body is thirsty, saliva production is decreased. Your teeth are much more prone to additional damage from the same volume of soda, than if you were not thirsty.