Is soda bad for my teeth?

Many people ask me about the effects of soda drinking. As a young chemist before my days in dental school, I used to do water analysis for air conditioning towers in NYC. One day I dropped a penny into a glass of phosphoric acid (which is used in the carbonation process and noticed how shiny it got. Two things were important to me from this,that erosion was a function of acidity levels, and time of exposure.

So how does this effect us? Well, I always tell my patients that everything you put in your mouth will cause bacteria present to produce 1/2 hour of acidity to your teeth.This is why they tell you to eat three square meals and brush after each one. This limits your acidity outcomes and the brushing neuatralizes the acid.

When it comes to soda things change. Soda already has a ph close to 3 and most people sip soda. So between the ph and the multiplicative acidity it causes tooth decay,and erosion is inevitable.

So the next time you drink soda try not to sip it over hours and always brush afterwards.