Vaping may make cavities more likely because it is “sticky” like sweets.
According to early results of new research, vaping may raise a person’s risk for cavities and tooth decay.
According to Dr. Karina Irusa, a research author and assistant professor of comprehensive care at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, the aerosolized e-liquid used in vape pens may coat teeth in a sweet, sticky film that encourages bacteria growth. This is similar to going to bed sucking on a lollipop.
The sticky aerosol may provide the ideal environment for cavities if artificial sweeteners and flavours are added. The bacteria “feed on the sugar,”.
However, because e-cigarette use among teenagers is so common (2.5 million teenagers use them in the United States alone), the prospect that it could raise the risk of tooth decay in this generation is concerning, according to specialists who research vaping in young people.
We know that young people are vaping 24/7,” said , a paediatrics professor at Stanford University School of Medicine. Teenagers have anecdotally reported to us that they take hits when they wake up in the middle of the night, Â who was not part in the new study. They vape all night long while keeping their vaporizer under their pillows.
The majority of the adult patients who visited the Tufts dentistry clinic for treatment were the subject of the study. Only 136 out of 13,216 patients reported vaping.
Numerous patients were already at high risk for tooth decay due to dietary habits or other oral health problems.
They discovered that e-cigarette users had a “significantly” increased probability of getting cavities than non-users among these high-risk patients.
The Tufts researchers hypothesised that vapers could require certain therapies, such as fluoride toothpaste and mouthwash that is strong enough to be prescribed.
Irusa’s study group has previously hypothesised that the front teeth’s tips may become decayed as a result of using e-cigarettes.
Because they are simpler to clean, those regions are less frequently damaged. They’re simpler to get to,” stated Irusa. “I believe that the primary offender may be the aerosol’s stickiness.”
Dr. Purnima Kumar, chair of the Department of Periodontology and Oral Medicine at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry and a representative for the American Dental Association, said, “This is exactly what we thought was going to happen.”
Although Kumar was not part in the latest study, he released a different study in 2020 that showed using an e-cigarette drastically changed one’s oral flora.
These individuals’ molecular oral health profiles had changed after just six months of consumption, according to Kumar. Regular cigarettes “there were changes that we would only see after five years of smoking.”
Different oral bacteria were present in the mouths of the e-cigarette users. These bacteria feed on heated e-liquid components such propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin, which give vapes their nicotine and pleasant flavours.
“Bacteria are always seeking nourishment. You can vape today, and for the following 10 hours, your bacteria will continue to feed on the vape, she explained.
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The e-cigarette users had different kinds of oral bacteria that thrive on heated e-liquid ingredients, such as propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin, which add nicotine and sweet flavors to vapes.
Bacteria are constantly looking for food. You can vape today, and your bacteria are still feeding off of your vape for the next 10 hours.
