Non-Cariogenic Sweeteners and Dental Caries

“The purpose of this report is to review the current published evidence regarding the relationship between sugar substitutes and dental caries…These studies demonstrated a consistent decrease in dental caries, ranging from 30 to 60 percent, among subjects using sugar substitutes as compared to subjects in a control group. These caries rate reductions were observed in subjects using xylitol or sorbitol as the sugar substitute in chewing gum or toothpaste. The highest caries reductions were observed in subjects using xylitol. These findings suggest that the replacement of sucrose with sorbitol and xylitol may significantly decrease the incidence of dental caries.”