Teeth Erosion - Research Paper Example

Different approaches have been employed, but the underlying concerns revolve around dental composite resins and food and drinks contents1, prior to evaluation of teeth erosion. Both baby and adult enamel are subject to erosion under various and different circumstances. Dental erosion that does not result from bacteria involvement can be evaluated based on chemical etching processes. The hard tissue of the teeth can be lost through chemical etching and/or chelation processes2. Acid levels dictated by pH values influence teeth erosion in that regard.

In the pursuit of this topic, black coffee, black tea and herbal tea are the three beverages that are of key interest. Samples of baby and adult enamels were used to assess the effect of each of the three beverages on dental composites. In each of the three beverages, the enamels were immersed for 336 hours, and the weight of the enamels recorded at regular intervals of time. Percentage weight losses were computed for both baby and adult enamels. Values obtained were further used to plot graphs that related percentage weight loss of the enamels to time take for that weight loss to take place.

Baby and adult enamels were compared in each beverage. Finally, the baby and adult enamels were compared individually in all three beverages. Black coffee This beverage has a pH value of approximately 5.3. Weight loss in enamels immersed in black coffee was monitored against time regular time records. Differences in results emerged between the baby and adult enamel samples used. This observation is attributed to the fact that enamel microhardness and color stability varies across different ages.

Tender aged persons have a relatively weak microhardness compared to that of adults. The graph that compares teeth erosion in both babies and adults depict a higher enamel sample weight loss in babies, compared to that of adults. The curve of weight loss against time in the black coffee beverage is persistently increasing in babies. That of adults increases for the first 120 hours, and then follows a fluctuating trend up to the 336th hour. Black tea With a pH value of approximately 4.7, black tea is characteristic of lower dental erosion levels compared to black coffee.

Dental composite break downs are responsible for the observed weight losses in all samples used. In the black tea samples, the weight loss and subsequent percentages therein depict a different scenario to that observed in black coffee. Baby samples still lost weight more than those of adults. Irregular fluctuations were realized over the first 168 hours, followed by increasing weight loss over each time interval for the remaining time. This meant that teeth erosion in baby enamels was increasing over time.

For adults, the first 168 hours also depict fluctuating erosion trend and consequent increasing erosion over the remaining time. Herbal tea The approximate pH value for herbal tea is 5.6. Adult teeth erosion is relatively high in herbal tea as compared to that of the baby enamel samples. The scenario observed in this case is significantly different from the two above. The adults’ weight loss-time curve maintains a level higher than that of baby samples. Fluctuations are evident, with persistent increase in teeth erosion being observed over the 336 hours.

For the baby samples, 0 to 120 hours of immersion accounts for less than 0.5% of enamel weight loss. 120 to 192 hours depict a sharp increase and decrease in enamel weight loss. After that, maintaining a percentage weight loss of less