The influence of beverages on the esthetics of orthodontic ligatures: in vitro study

Previous studies showed that orthodontic ligatures can change their color if the patient consumes certain foods, uses mouth rinses, or applies lipstick. Color changes are also influenced by factors such as ultraviolet radiation and thermal energy. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of certain drinks on the color changes of esthetic orthodontic elastic ligatures. The study object consisted of standard-size clear orthodontic ligature sticks made from the same material as the ligatures themselves. In this study color changes were analyzed using a digital spectrometer. The results showed that all solutions caused changes in the light transmittance of the ligatures compared with the control group after 10 days. The transmittance values of the turmeric, coffee, and black tea groups were similar to one another, though coffee showed the lowest transmittance of all. When evaluating the effect of the solutions on color changes, it was determined that coffee and turmeric solution caused the greatest color changes in the ligatures, followed by tea and juices. The data from this experiment indicated that the most pronounced statistically significant color changes over 10 days were observed in the coffee, turmeric, and black tea groups, followed by green tea, carrot, beetroot juice, Fanta, and Coca-Cola.