Sports drinks do more harm to teeth than sodas

Article from "General Dentistry" reported by NutraIngredients:

22/03/2005 - Sports and energy drinks caused more damage to tooth enamel than colas, report researchers on a new study.

The findings support recent studies from the UK showing that sports drinks can cause serious damage to teeth. It underlines the need for manufacturers to look at new formulas that are less damaging to teeth. “This study revealed that the enamel damage caused by non-cola and sports beverages was three to 11 times greater than cola-based drinks, with energy drinks and bottled lemonades causing the most harm to dental enamel,” said lead author J. Anthony von Fraunhofer, from the University of Maryland Dental School.

A previous study in the July/August issue of General Dentistry demonstrated that non-cola and canned iced teas can more aggressively harm dental enamel than cola.

The study continuously exposed enamel from cavity-free molars and premolars to a variety of popular sports beverages, including energy drinks, fitness water and sports drinks, as well as non-cola beverages such as lemonade and ice tea for a period of 14 days (336 hours).

The exposure time was comparable to approximately 13 years of normal beverage consumption.

There was significant enamel damage associated with all beverages tested, report authors in the January/February issue of General Dentistry.

Lemonade, energy drinks and sports drinks caused the most damage with fitness water, ice tea and cola coming some way after. Most cola-based drinks may contain one or more acids, commonly phosphoric and citric acids but sports beverages contain other additives and organic acids that can advance dental erosion, said the authors.

However there are some solutions available to manufacturers operating in the $5 billion sports drink industry.

A recent study by researchers in the UK showed that a drink developed by GlaxoSmithKline with higher levels of calcium and a higher pH level than a regular sports drink showed dramatically reduced enamel erosion, to the same level as water.

Dutch whey ingredients firm Borculo Domo has also recently introduced a whey isolate that when included in a drink, coats the tooth enamel protecting it from other compounds in the drink.

Ironically, the following was also reported by NutraIngedients today:

22/03/2005 - PepsiCo firm Gatorade has introduced a new product with twice as much sodium and three times the potassium of its market leading beverage to meet demand from endurance athletes.

The new product, called Gatorade Endurance Formula, is the first extension to the successful brand since it launched in 1965. It is targeted at athletes who lose electrolytes during long periods of intense exercise and PepsiCo, which acquired the brand when it bought the Quaker Oats business in 2001, will be hoping to stave off increasing competition to its 80 per cent share of the $5 billion US sports drink market.

It could also help its share of the international market where Coca-Cola is a closer rival. Gatorade had 15 per cent of western Europe's total volume in 2003 but Coca-Cola's Powerade was close behind with 12 per cent.

The new product contains five electrolytes, including 200mg of sodium and 90mg of potassium, as well as chloride, calcium and magnesium.

Like Gatorade Thirst Quencher, Gatorade Endurance Formula contains a scientifically balanced 6 per cent carbohydrate blend that helps speed fluid back into the body and fuel working muscles.

The company also markets the vitamin-enriched Propel Fitness Water under the Gatorade name.

Savithri Ramalinga, the team leader of Frost & Sullivan's food and beverage group, estimated last year that sports drinks would continue to grow at a CAGR of 11.2 per cent through 2010 with potential revenues reaching slightly over $6 billion in 2010.

My empirical observation is that there is not a lot of longtime cyclists who haved used sports drinks regularly around who are missing teeth. Probably because they brush regularly.

Contrast that with longtime methamphetamine addicts who are often missing teeth. The explanation is that the drug makes their mouth dry and they use sugary drinks all day long to keep their mouths wet. And since crank addicts are not the most health-conscience folks you'll meet, many of them don't brush their teeth everyday. Drinking soda 16 hours a day + not brushing = teeth fall out.

I think if you practice good oral hygiene there's nothing to worry about.

Having said that - I think if you're riding less than two hours you don't need sugary sports drinks. Just drink water.

__________________
Fearful people do stupid things.

I found using just sport drinks on long rides increased the amount of plaque significantly. My dentist noticed too.
Now I rinse with H2O

Me too. I need a good swig of water with Gatorade or Cytomax to wash the sticky down. When I get home, a good rinse with Listerine is part of the routine too.

I don't believe that it's the sugars in sports drinks that are primarily responsible for the damage, but rather the fact that "sports beverages contain other additives and organic acids that can advance dental erosion." In other words, it's the acids and other additives washing over the tooth enamel that can cause problems. So, while good dental hygiene is always a good idea, I don't think that brushing your teeth or rinsing your mouth will prevent damage to tooth enamel if you drink a lot of sports drinks.

Of course I imagine that you'd have to drink a lot of sports drinks over an extended period of time for the acids and additives to damage the tooth enamel, but it's still something to consider.