Xylitol Topical Oral Syrup Prevents Tooth Decay in Children in Developing Countries

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Title: Xylitol Topical Oral Syrup Prevents Tooth Decay in Children in Developing Countries
URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/225012.htm
Doctor's Guide
July 7, 2008

TORONTO -- July 7, 2008 -- Dental researchers have reported a significant reduction of tooth decay in toddlers from low-resource countries who were treated with the topical syrup xylitol, according to a new study.

Researchers from the University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, presented the results of their study July 5 at the 86th General Session of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) in Toronto, Ontario.

In a recent clinical trial in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, children aged 6 to 15 months were given oral doses of xylitol in fruit-flavored syrup daily to determine whether the substance can prevent early-childhood tooth decay.

The researchers reported that nearly 76% of the children in the group who received xylitol were free of tooth decay by the end of the study, compared with 48% of the children in the group that did not receive the substance.

The Marshall Islands in the Pacific were chosen for the study because it is an area where childhood tooth decay is a serious public health problem. The average child entering Head Start at age 5 has 6.8 cavities -- 2 to 3 times the rate in a typical mainland community.

According to researchers, at the end of the trial nearly 76% of the children in the study group were caries-free, compared with 48% in a comparable group that did not receive treatment.

SOURCE: International and American Association for Dental Research

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