TriStar Brands (NZ) Ltd Spry® Dental Defence : Improving Oral Health Since Before Day 1

During Pregnancy Even before a baby is born, the pregnant mother can proactively influence the child’s future oral health. In a process called maternal imprinting, the mother passes on the makeup of her microbiome (the sum of the microbiota in the human body), whether good or bad, to the baby. If the mother has a good oral microbiome, that is if she has a healthy mouth, then her baby will also have a healthy mouth. Case in point, studies show that when a pregnant mother uses xylitol, her child will have decreased dental decay (Soderling, Nakai).

Babies Some parents think that oral care isn’t as important in the early years of a child’s life because the baby teeth will fall out. However, this period in the child’s life is when a healthy oral environment is established, which can lead to a lifetime of healthy or unhealthy teeth and gums. Studies show that using xylitol early on in a child’s life will have long-lasting effects by decreasing cavity-causing bacteria in the mouth.

Children Losing baby teeth and the eruption of the permanent teeth is a crucial time to ensure the microbiome is healthy and solidify healthy habits of brushing and flossing. Permanent teeth should last a lifetime, and they will as long as they are well taken care of from the beginning. To help, brands like Spry Dental Defense have produced gum, mints, and candy sweetened with 100% xylitol. These options are perfect to help maintain the microbiome in an easy and convenient way.

Young Adults Today, much of our food and drink is full of sugar and carbs and are highly acidic. People are also used to snacking, which doesn’t allow the body to regulate and maintain a healthy pH in the mouth. This leads to a highly acidic oral environment and dental decay. Teens epitomize this dilemma. However, as they start using xylitol products like gum and mints, they can take care of their teeth while on-the-go. Xylitol actively regulates the oral environment to ensure healthy teeth.

Middle Age Recently researchers have found a startling and important connection between oral health and whole-body health. They identified that poor oral health, specifically inflammation in the gums, is connected to heart disease, diabetes, oral cancer, and even Alzheimer’s. Inflammation in the gums occurs due to a bodily response to high amounts of bacteria in the mouth. Ensuring you have a healthy oral microbiome through daily maintenance and care decreases the chances of these diseases developing due to oral health reasons.

Seniors Continuing your oral care efforts is important as you age. However, many seniors have difficulty with dry mouth, which leads to poor oral health, since saliva is the body’s natural cleanser for the mouth. However, xylitol products, especially gums, mints and candies, have moisturizing benefits which help overcome dry mouth, leading to happy teeth and a better life.