Adolescent caries: a discussion on diet and other factors, including soft drink consumption

It can be summarized that adolescents have unique needs and concerns in regards to dental care. Among these concerns is the adolescent diet, which often contains high amounts of high-carbohydrate snack foods. Popular among these foods are carbonated beverages, usually containing significant amounts of sugar and caffeine. Sugar is a concern, as increased consumption of sugars has been identified as a potential factor in an increase in caries activity. Caffeine is a factor, as regular ingestion of caffeine has been shown to potentially lead to a physical desire to habitually ingest caffeine. Thus, there are increases in both the amount of sugars, as well as the amount of time that these sugars are present in the oral environment. Perhaps more significantly, the presence of caffeine in soft drinks makes it less likely that preventive counseling with an adolescent, related to the importance of a decrease in consumption, will be successful. In essence, teenagers like to drink "pop," and they don't want to stop. Furthermore, because caffeine consumption is considered socially acceptable and is ingrained into daily habits, parents are likely to be regular consumers of coffee, carbonated beverages, or other caffeine-containing products. This makes preventive counseling on these matters more challenging. Dentists, dental hygienists, and related health professionals should be aware of the unique aspects of treating adolescents, and be willing and able to spend time on prevention and diet counseling. Preventive measures such as prescription-strength fluoride gels for home use, fluoride varnishes, and others may need additional emphasis on individuals exhibiting increased caries susceptibility.