Sugar Alcohol Sweeteners as Alternatives to Sugar with Special Consideration of Xylitol

Introduction: Dental caries is a diet-associated disease which continues to be a serious health problem in most industrialized and developing countries. Strategies to maximize caries prevention should automatically consider the use of sugar substitutes. It is important that public health authorities are made cognizant of the availability of new polyol-type sugar substitutes. Review Summary: Clinical studies have shown that xylitol, a natural, physiologic sugar alcohol of the pentitol type, can be used as a safe and effective caries-limiting sweetener. Habitual use of xylitol-containing food and oral hygiene adjuvants has been shown to reduce the growth of dental plaque, to interfere with the growth of caries-associated bacteria, to decrease the incidence of dental caries, and to be associated with remineralization of caries lesions. Numerous public regulatory bodies have endorsed the use of xylitol as a caries-limiting agent. Other sugar alcohols that have been successfully used as sugar substitutes include D -glucitol (sorbitol), which, howReceived: June 10, 2010 Accepted: December 26, 2010 Prof. Kauko K. Mäkinen Institute of Dentistry, University of Turku Lemminkäisenkatu 2 FI–20520 Turku (Finland) Tel. +358 40 5561 063, E-Mail kauko.makinen @ uusikaupunki.fi © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel 1011–7571/11/0204–0303$38.00/0 Accessible online at: www.karger.com/mpp D ow nl oa de d by : 54 .7 0. 40 .1 1 10 /3 1/ 20 17 6 :5 7: 37 P M