Latest state of research on lactitol and dental caries

Research on the dental properties of lactitol as a bulk sweetener to replace dietary sugar is reviewed under three headings: microbiological experiments in vitro, investigations in laboratory animals, and studies in man. Lactitol was not easily metabolized by acidogenic and polysaccharide-forming oral micro-organisms, its enamel-demineralizing potential in vitro intra-oral acid development and dental plaque formation from lactitol in man were substantially lower than from sucrose. The indications for dental health benefits are promising.