Remember what happened to the dull penny when you stuck in a glass of Coke? Well, this is your teeth on soda. And the photos are enough to make you think the zombie apocalypse is here, now.
According to an article in the Huffington Post, diet soda is the dental equivalent of "methamphetamine or crack cocaine use" on your enamel. Published in the March/April 2013 issue of the General Dentistry journal, a diet soda drinker's teeth were compared to that of two drug addicts, and the ghoulish result: the extent of dental erosion was similar among all three.
"You look at it side-to-side with 'meth mouth' or 'coke mouth,' it is startling to see the intensity and extent of damage more or less the same," said Dr. Mohamed Bassiouny, a professor of restorative dentistry at Temple University's Kornberg School of Dentistry.
The thirtysomething woman studied consumed two litres of diet soda daily for three to five years. All three participants were from similar socioeconomic backgrounds, and had access to "fluoridated public water."
Still, the study is shocking. The enamel erosion from these highly acidic (not to mention sugary) substances makes you think twice about what you are doing not just to your body but also to your teeth.
The soda industry is a gargantuan one. No surprise that The American Beverage Association refuted the study's findings, which it called "irresponsible."
However, Dr. Bassiouny claimed that throughout his career he has observed similar incidences of soda-caused erosion.
"I was trying to make a parallel between drug abusers—and the usual neglect for themselves—and put this with the same traits of someone who drinks diet soda," he said.
So you and I may not drink two litres of soda a day, but the effect of just one or two glasses shouldn't be underestimated.
Did you know soft drinks also do this to your body, not to mention what it can do to your teenager?
Will you kick the can, or is soda—like everything else—still perfectly sweet in moderation?
Printer-friendly version