Dentists give their blessing to soft drink that passes acid test
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.THE FIRST soft drink to be backed by dentists was launched yesterday. While the British Dental Association said it would prefer children to drink water or milk, it said that if children wanted soft drinks then it could recommend Ribena Tooth Kind.
The drink has been accredited by the association, the national professional body for dentists, which means that its experts have confirmed manufacturer SmithKline Beecham's scientific claims and entitles the drink to carry the organisation's name and logo.
National surveys show dental decay is a significant public health problem and many children have dental erosion from a very early age. The association says sugar in diet can cause decay and acids cause erosion - the wearing away of the hard enamel on the surface of the tooth.
A 1996 survey for the Health Education Authority showed dental erosion by acidic drinks and other sources now affects 30 per cent of 13-year- olds.
And a 1993 survey of children's dental health reported that 50 per cent of five and six-year-olds had erosion on their primary incisor teeth and a quarter had enamel worn away.
"Until now there have been no soft drinks specially formulated not to promote dental erosion or encourage tooth decay." said John Hunt, chief executive of the BDA. "Our advice to parents of young children is still that water and milk are best for teeth. But if children want soft drinks then Ribena Tooth Kind is one that dentists can recommend."
The drink will be in the shops from late April and comes in bottles of blackcurrant flavour concentrate or in ready-to-drink cartons in blackcurrant, orange or strawberry flavours.
It contains no added sugar and is lower in the fruit acids which have been blamed for helping to cause dental erosion. It is also high in vitamin C. SmithKline Beecham says it used breakthrough technology to develop the drink with the specific aim of creating a drink that was "kind to teeth".
The BDA's accreditation system was introduced in 1991 to cover oral health products like toothpastes and mouth rinses and reassure dentists and the public about product safety and quality. This year the BDA extended the scheme to include food and drinks as a means of helping consumers make a healthy choice.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments