Food for Thought

By Janet Raloff

"Chocolate Toothpaste? Extract of Tasty Treat Could Fight Tooth Decay."

That's how Tulane University's news office provocatively titled a press release it issued last week. Sound sweet? Unfortunately, it's anything but. The extract, theobromine, is a bitter constituent of a number of plants, including the beans used to make chocolate. A chemical cousin to caffeine, this compound is also a stimulant—and doesn't taste the least bit chocolaty.

TOOTHPASTE BOOSTER. Researchers have discovered an alternative to fluoride that, in preliminary tests, better strengthens teeth and protects them from acids. Photodisc

That said, theobromine does show promise in fighting cavities. In preliminary tests, Tulane scientists have shown that this chemical—which chocolate-lovers regularly consume—strengthens teeth better than fluoride.

Theobromine's affect on the crystalline structure of teeth offers an additional benefit. For protecting our choppers from erosion by acids, it outperforms an equal concentration of the sodium fluoride found in most toothpastes. That suggests the new extract could limit the ravages of the acid-producing bacteria responsible for most tooth decay.

Since tooth decay is "the most preventable disease still plaguing humankind," the findings are potentially quite important, maintains engineer Arman Sadeghpour, who led the research. Moreover, he notes, the last half-century has witnessed "little to no innovation" in cavity-fighting additives for toothpastes.

So why not just eat chocolate? Because its sugars feed the bacteria that foster tooth decay. The fats in chocolate, which impart the food's delicious creaminess, also risk swelling the waistlines of a population that already collectively weighs far more than is healthy.

For more information, see this week's Food for Thought column at: http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20070526/food.asp.

Further Readings:

2007. Chocolate toothpaste better than fluoride, Researcher says. Tulane University news release. May 16. Available at http://www2.tulane.edu/article_news_details.cfm?ArticleID=7364.

Gorman, J. 2000. The new cavity fighters. Science News 158(Aug. 19):122-123. Available at http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20000819/bob9.asp.

Raloff, J. 2004. Cinnamon cleans the breath. Science News Online (May 22). Available at http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20040522/food.asp.

______. 2001. A brew for teeth—and the rest of you. Science News Online (July 14). Available at http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20010714/food.asp.

______. 1997. Caries: Legacy of mom's lead exposure? Science News 152(Sept. 6):149. Available at http://www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_arc97/9_6_97/fob1.htm.

______. 1996. Do koalas get cavities? Science News Online (Oct. 5). Available at http://www.sciencenews.org/pages/sn_arch/10_5_96/food.htm.

______. 1986. Rinsing away decay. Science News 129(April 19):251.