In vivo dental plaque pH after consumption of dairy products

This in vivo study assessed plaque pH in subjects following the consumption of different dairy products. After receiving parental consent to participate, subjects (12-15 years old) were asked to refrain from brushing their teeth for 48 hours prior to the study. At baseline, plaque pH was determined at 4 different sites. Each of the subjects was then assigned randomly to 1 of 4 subgroups and each subgroup was given either cheese, milk, yogurt, or paraffin (control). After baseline, all subjects were allowed to chew and/or swish their respective product for 3 minutes and pH was assessed subsequently at different time intervals. Statistical analysis was performed using unpaired t-test and 1-way ANOVA. The results showed a statistically significant change in mean plaque pH after consuming different dairy products, as the plaque pH after 30 minutes was higher in the cheese group than that of the milk and yogurt groups, both of which showed a pH toward baseline after 30 minutes. These results suggest that cheese has the highest anticariogenic property among the dairy products studied, and that milk and yogurt can be considered as noncariogenic.