Which factor determines how often sugar is present in the mouth (drinks, sweet snacks, use of sippy cups)?

Which factor determines how often sugar is present in the mouth (drinks, sweet snacks, use of sippy cups)?

• A. Frequency
• B. Duration
• C. Amount
• D. Temperature

Answer: (A)

The frequency of exposure to fermentable carbohydrates determines how often sugar is present in the mouth. Each time you drink something sugary, eat candy, or use a sippy cup, sugar is in the mouth and available for oral bacteria to metabolize into acids. Those acids cause demineralization of the tooth surface, and when exposures happen repeatedly, there’s less time for saliva to buffer and for remineralization to occur. So, even if each exposure is small, frequent exposures create repeated acid challenges that raise caries risk. In contrast, how long the sugar stays in contact per exposure or how much sugar is present per exposure are less impactful than the number of times sugar is introduced. Temperature doesn’t determine how often sugar appears in the mouth.

The frequency of exposure to fermentable carbohydrates determines how often sugar is present in the mouth. Each time you drink something sugary, eat candy, or use a sippy cup, sugar is in the mouth and available for oral bacteria to metabolize into acids. Those acids cause demineralization of the tooth surface, and when exposures happen repeatedly, there’s less time for saliva to buffer and for remineralization to occur. So, even if each exposure is small, frequent exposures create repeated acid challenges that raise caries risk. In contrast, how long the sugar stays in contact per exposure or how much sugar is present per exposure are less impactful than the number of times sugar is introduced. Temperature doesn’t determine how often sugar appears in the mouth.