Make the right choice!

Remember when a bottle of soda pop was a big treat on a hot summer day? Well, soda may still taste great, but the portion size has exploded, and so has our consumption! Since 1970, our average yearly consumption has increased by 2½ times! Way back when, soda came in a 12 oz bottle, but now the standard serving size at amusement parks is a whopping 32 oz!

There are many health issues surrounding soda, but front and center is the oral and dental health of our children, particularly our teenagers. Individual soda companies approach schools with lucrative long­term exclusivity deals called “pouring rights” in return for funding. The marketing is so intense it’s almost impossible for teenagers to ignore it. Daily consumption among teens has almost doubled in the last twenty years alone!

It’s very easy to forget that soda is a sugary, acid-filled beverage that attacks your teeth and gums with a vengeance. Our mouths are filled with natural bacteria that, when combined with soda sugars, produce acid that attacks teeth for twenty minutes or more. The phosphoric acids in pop can dissolve tooth enamel resulting in erosion or loss of hard tissues from the tooth surface.

What to do? Try sugar-free products, or best yet, try that great-tasting, simple, free thirst quencher. It’s called water, and it has no fat, no caffeine, no sugar, and no acid!