Researchers in the Centre tested 23 different types of drink, including soft drinks and sports drinks, and found drinks that contain acidic additives and with low pH levels cause measurable damage to dental enamel, even if the drink is sugar-free. 
 
 “Many people are not aware that while reducing your sugar intake does reduce your risk of dental decay, the chemical mix of acids in some foods and drinks can cause the equally damaging condition of dental erosion,” Melbourne Laureate Professor Eric Reynolds, CEO of the Oral Health CRC, said. 
 
 “Dental erosion occurs when acid dissolves the hard tissues of the tooth. In its early stages erosion strips away the surface layers of tooth enamel. If it progresses to an advanced stage it can expose the soft pulp inside the tooth.” 
 
 Early dental erosion can usually be reversed by oral health professionals with treatments to replace lost minerals. In more advanced cases, the lost surface of a tooth may need a filling or crown. 
 
 Studies in the Oral Health CRC measured dental enamel softening and tooth surface loss following exposure to a range of drinks. 
 
 Significant findings: 
 
 The majority of soft drinks and sports drinks caused softening of dental enamel by 30%-50%. 
 
 Both sugar-containing and sugar-free soft drinks (including flavoured mineral waters) produced measurable loss of the tooth surface, with no significant difference between the two groups of drinks. 
 
 Of 8 sports drinks tested, all but 2 (those with higher calcium content) were found to cause loss of dental enamel. 
 
 The Oral Health CRC has this week released a briefing paper outlining the findings of its dental erosion studies and is recommending better consumer information and product labelling to help people consider their oral health when selecting food and drink products. 
 
 Professor Reynolds says ‘sugar-free’ labelling does not necessarily mean a product is safe for teeth. 
 
 “We have even found sugar-free confectionery products that are labelled ‘Toothfriendly’ and which when tested were found to be erosive.” 
 
 Preventing dental erosion: 
 
 Check ingredients for acidic additives, especially citric acid (ingredient number 330) and phosphoric acid (ingredient number 338). 
 
 Drink more water (preferably fluoridated) and limit soft drinks and sports drinks. 
 
 After eating or drinking acidic products, don’t brush your teeth straight away as this can remove the softened tooth layer. Instead, rinse your mouth with water and wait one hour before brushing. 
 
 Have regular check-ups with your oral health professional. 
 
 About the Oral Health CRC 
 
 The Oral Health CRC is a consortium of university and industry partners based at the University of Melbourne and supported by the Australian Government’s Department of Industry, Innovation and Science. The Centre carries out world-class scientific and clinical research to advance the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases. 

 If you've ever grabbed a sugar-free drink for your kids instead of juice because you think it's safe for those darling pearly whites, you might want to rethink your decision. 
 
 Scientists from the Melbourne University’s Oral Health Cooperative Research Centre tested a wide range of sugar-free soft drinks, sports drinks and sweets and found that many of them can be just as harmful to teeth as their sugared counterparts due to their chemical composition. 
 
 Sugar can destroy teeth when it is fermented by bacteria to produce acid that leads to decay. The condition is extremely common: In the United States, about one in four children ages 2 to 5 had dental caries or cavities in their first set of teeth, according to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted in 2011–2012. Among those aged 6–11, 21 percent had had cavities in their permanent teeth. And among those 12 to 19, it was a whopping 58 percent. 
 
 [Cutting sugar from kids’ diets appears to have a beneficial effect in just 10 days] 
 
 While sugar-free foods won't lead directly to cavities, the researchers found that many can strip away a tooth's outer layer -- leading to chalkiness of the tooth's surface, pitting, opacity, tooth sensitivity and other issues. That's because they contain acids like phosphoric acid (found in colas) or citric acid (found mainly in lemon and lime flavored drinks). 
 
 “Therefore, banning sugar-containing beverages from schools may have positive health effects for reducing obesity, diabetes and dental caries but it may not reduce the risk of dental erosion," Eric Reynolds, an oral health professor, and his co-authors wrote in the Australian Dental Journal. 
 
 [A periodic table guide to sweeteners] 
 
 The researchers tested 15 soft drinks sold in schools on healthy human molars that had been extracted and found that all of them led to significant erosion of the dental enamel, with no difference between sugared and sugar-free drinks. This table from their report shows that the sugared and non-sugared soft drinks are the worst in terms of their acid content, followed by sports drinks. 
 
 In testing eight brands of sports drinks, they found that all but two of them caused significant loss and softening of the enamel surface -- although the effect was significantly less severe than with a soft drink like Coca-Cola, which was used for comparison. Note how water, which was used as a control, actually had a positive effect on the surface enamel. 
 
 [In letter to their baby, Mark Zuckerberg and wife pledge to give away $45b — and imagine ‘a world without suffering from disease’] 
 
 Standard pH tests, which indicate how acidic a liquid is, show that sugar-free candy can be similarly destructive. Of 32 commercially available sugar-free confections that were tested, 22 had a pH level below 4.5, which is below healthy levels required to maintain the integrity of tooth enamel and prevent tooth demineralization. 
 
 What does all this mean, practically speaking? 
 
 The researchers recommended that when it comes to drinks you may want to minimize both sugared and sugar-substitute beverages and choose the most basic, old-fashioned way of rehydrating -- water. Fluorinated water is even better. If you must drink or eat an acidic product, rinse your mouth out with water afterwards and wait an hour before grabbing that toothbrush. Brushing immediately can remove the softened layer of tooth. 
 
 Choose mint or menthol flavored sugar-free confections and avoid those that are fruit flavored, particularly lemon. 
 
 Sugar-free gum is still okay. In fact, the researchers said it can stimulate saliva flow, rinse away acids and reharden softened tooth enamel. 
 
 The American Beverage Association, an industry group, said in a statement on Monday that an individual's susceptibility to dental caries and erosion is determined by a number of factors, including lifestyle, diet and genetics as well as the types of foods consumed, the length of time foods are retained in the mouth and the level of oral hygiene. 
 
 "Characterizing beverages, such as juices and soft drinks, as a unique cause of dental caries or tooth erosion is overly simplistic," the ABA said. The organization also noted that low- and no-calorie sweeteners have been proven safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and its counterparts around the world and that it feels there is "no reason why the average individual should avoid them." 
 
 This post has been updated. 
 
 Read more: 
 
 In letter to their baby, Mark Zuckerberg and wife pledge to give away $45b — and imagine ‘a world without suffering from disease’ 
 
 Cutting sugar from kids’ diets appears to have a beneficial effect in just 10 days 
 
 A periodic table guide to sweeteners 
 
 In chilling accounts, Paris doctors tell of war-like effort to save hundreds of wounded after attacks 
 
 Modern men tend to overeat like cavemen as a way of showing off to women 
 
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– Worried about tooth decay? Switching to sugar-free drinks won't save you from the acids that destroy enamel and wear down tissues in your teeth, a new study says. Researchers at the University of Melbourne reached this conclusion by having people drink sugar and sugar-free drinks, and found little difference in resulting tooth decay, UPI reports. "While reducing your sugar intake does reduce your risk of dental decay, the chemical mix of acids in some foods and drinks can cause the equally damaging condition of dental erosion," says study co-author Eric Reynolds, per a press release. In the study's first phase, participants consumed 15 drinks (some with sugar, some without) easily found in Australian schools—and all of them except milk caused tooth decay. In phase two, participants downed water, Coca-Cola, and eight sports drinks. Water caused no decay and Coca-Cola the worst, while sports drinks like Powerade, Gatorade, and Staminade (whether powdered or liquid) all decayed teeth; only Endura and Sukkie, which have more calcium, didn't wear down human molars. Participants also ate 32 sugar-free baked goods and candy, 20 of which had about as much acidity as sugar-free drinks; fruit-flavored goodies were the worst offenders, lemon-flavored ones in particular. The Washington Post notes that sugar-free gum is OK because it can get saliva flowing and actually help. But when it comes to beverages, researchers advise that you "choose the most basic, old-fashioned way of rehydrating—water," notes the Post. (Meanwhile, it seem the sugar industry has long meddled with cavity research.)