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Posted on Sep 25, 2002, 1 p.m.
By Bill Freeman
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y. report that common preservatives such as benzoates and sorbates (often found in soda, frozen foods, juices and salad dressing) boost the effect of cavity-protecting fluoride. Laboratory tests involving four groups of rats -- one group received fluoride, one was given benzoates, another received both, and the last group had neither -- showed the fluoride-benzoates combination to be most effective.
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y. report that common preservatives such as benzoates and sorbates (often found in soda, frozen foods, juices and salad dressing) boost the effect of cavity-protecting fluoride. Laboratory tests involving four groups of rats -- one group received fluoride, one was given benzoates, another received both, and the last group had neither -- showed the fluoride-benzoates combination to be most effective. Rats given neither substance developed an average of 16 cavities within three weeks.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: International Association of Dental Research, April 2000 Annual Meeting
