DENTAL DISEASE

Greymouth Evening Star, 14 August 1920, Page 2

DENTAL DISEASE

SUGAR DANGER,

OPINION OF EXPERTS

(Published under Authority of the Education Department).

It has been suggested by a newspaper correspondent that the Education Department should make clearer upon what grounds it has stated in an article recently published under its authority that sugar is a cause of dental disease. The article referred to is one of a series in which the Department is endeavouring to do something to stem the steady advance of this now almost universal disease, which is be-

coming an increasingly serious menace to our national welfare. It should be emphasised at the outset that the excessive consumption of sugar is not the only cause to which dental decay is attributed, but in the ophion of eminent dent il- and medical authorities after carefal observation and research during the last twenty years, it is certainly regarded as one of the chief causes of the phenomenal increase in dental caries experienced in modern times. Were we possessed of no further knowledge than that sugar being an acid-pro-ducing food helps to decalcify the enamel, which is the protective covering of the teeth, a glance at the figures showing the I crease in the consumption of sugar durg the last fifty years would probably nvince the average reader that there is me connection between the excessive conmption of sugar and the increase in •ntal decay. Ample proof in support of this belief ill be found in the following references ~ and extracts from, the writings of lose qualified to speak upon this subject. H. P. Pickerill, M.D., M.D.S. (Birmingham), Dean of the Dental Faculty, University of Otago, who has engaged in considerable research work in connection with the causes of dental disease, has stated that manufactured sugar, especially in the form of sweets, is a potent cause of dental decay. He affirms that a growing child can obtain al lthe sugar it needs for its muscles,- fat, and heat development from consumption of it in a natural form, i.e., as found in fruit and some vegetables. Dr Pickerill shows that the example of Native children chewing a large amount of sugarcane being quoted and accepted by many as evidence that cane sugar cannot be productive of dental caries is erroneous. The juice of the sugar-cane is markedly acid like fruit-juice and produces a copious flow of alkaline saliva, inducing a condition of alkalinity in the mouth five times greater than that evoked by bread and butter.

There is also a marked difference in the concentration of cane sugar as taken by natives in sugar-cane and as taken in the form of lump sugar or sweets. It requires about twenty sticks of sugar-cane to make lib of lump sugar. This means that every large "lump" of sugar is equal to two feet of cane. European children frequently therefore eat the equivalent of at least 10 to 12 feet of cane in a few minutes, while many adults consume the equivalent of at least 2 to 6 feet of cane in a cup of tea, J. Sim Wallace, D.Sc, M.D., L.D.S., formerly Dental Surgeon and Lecturer on Dental Surgery, London Hospital, has written numerous works on the cause and prevention of decay in teeth and of common diseases in childhood. For twenty years past he has consistently taught that for the prevention of decay in teeth we must rely upon a properly arrange! diet. In numbers of cases Dr Wallace has proved that children, brought up on a rational diet with the elimination of free sugar, are immune from dental disease. He discovered the kinds of foods which tended to induce dental caries and those which tendeu to prevent caries, from considerations of the evolutionary history of man and his diet., from careful clinical and statistical observations with regard to diet among children who were practicalyl free from and those who were ravaged by caries, and from comparisons of the teeth and diet of different savage races. He says, "The excellent results which have been got" by bringing up children on a dietetic regime based upon the knowledge derived from these sources show beyond all possibility of doubt that dental caries is not only preventible but that it is easily and surely preventible." The teachings of \)v Wallace with re gard to the elimination of free sugar from the diet of children have been carried out by enthusiasts all 'over the world, and in this Dominion there are instances of dentists and doctors who, having sufficient faith in their beliefs, have put them into practice with their own children, with the result that these children now possess perfect teeth.

Dr James Wheatley, County and School Medicai Officer for Shropshire, has been able to-prove from his statistics that the eating of sweets by children is responsible for 50 "per cent of the decayed teeth in children at the present day. In May of this year Dr Wheatley produced a record of investigations in the elementary schools of Shropshire, showing that since the war there had been a very pronounced decrease in the number of children suffering from decayed teeth due to the altered character of the bread and the lessened consumption of sweets. The average percentage of children with teeth free from decay at the age of five years during the years 1910—1914 inclusive was 5 per cent, and during the last six mouths previous to May, 1920, it was 44 per cent. At the age of 12 years the figures were 2.9 and 27.1 respectively.

Reference to other authorities must be deferred for another article. In conclusion the Department considers that in view of t'.io above and other statements it may be safely said that it is now a generally accepted opinion amongst experts that sugar is one of the most potent causes of dental decay.