A
bstract
Aim
The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of natural sugar substitutes—stevia, jaggery, and honey on salivary pH and
Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans)
count in saliva.
Materials and methods
Children aged between 7 and 12 years with no active carious lesion were selected. A total of 80 subjects were randomly selected and divided into three experimental groups and one control group, with 20 subjects in each group. Prior to rinsing with the respective solutions, the baseline pH and
S. mutans
count were evaluated for each individual. All solutions were freshly prepared whenever required. After rinsing with the respective solutions, saliva samples were collected to evaluate pH and
S. mutans
count. The pH was analyzed at different time intervals, that is, 0 (immediately after rinsing), 15, and 30 minutes. The
S. mutans
count was analyzed after 30 minutes of rinsing with the respective solutions.
Results
The results were tabulated and statistically analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and
post hoc
tests. The results depicted that group I (stevia) showed a maximum increase in salivary pH, followed by group III (honey) and group III (jaggery) at different time intervals (0, 15, and 30 minutes). The maximum number of subjects who had shown a decrease in
S. mutans
count were from group III (honey), followed by group I (stevia), and group II (jaggery) after 30 minutes of rinsing with the respective solutions when compared to baseline
S. mutans
count.
Clinical significance
It is a universally known fact that dental caries is a multifactorial disease process, one of the key factors of which is the consumption of sugar. Of all the fermentable carbohydrates, sucrose is considered the archcriminal in the carious process. Hence, this advocates the need for developing suitable sugar substitutes that help in controlling dental caries. An ideal sugar substitute should not only minimize the risk of dental caries but also should have nutritional benefits.
Conclusion
Natural sugar substitutes (stevia, jaggery, and honey) have the ability to reduce caries risk in children.
How to cite this article
Sharma W, Bhola M, Bajaj N,
et al.
Comparative Evaluation of Changes in Salivary pH and
Streptococcus mutans
Count in Saliva by Natural Sugar Substitutes: An
In Vivo
Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(5):728–733.