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The British Dental Association sent out a warning that over one-third
of Britain’s 14-year-olds are destroying the enamel on their
teeth by consuming excessive amounts of carbonated drinks.
Although parents have expressed concerns over the sugar content
in fizzy drinks, they believed "diet" drinks were safe.
Research has shown that even though diet drinks resulted in less
tooth decay, they were no less acidic than regular drinks and contributed
to destroying children’s teeth from the outside.
Teenagers drinking numerous glasses of diet drinks each day were
exposed to the same amount of danger of decay.
Studies found that teenagers drinking four or more glasses a day
increased their risk of decay by 513 percent, which is significant
considering 92 percent of 14-year-olds consume fizzy drinks.
The study also showed that the problem of dental erosion was less
significant among 12-year-olds who did not drink fizzy drinks, while
those that did drink several glasses a day were 30 percent at risk
of tooth decay.
The
Guardian March 12, 2004
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