Can Vitamin D Prevent Tooth Decay?

Vitamin D is an essential element to a person’s overall health, but did you know that Vitamin D could also be essential to oral health as well?

According to a new review of existing studies published in the journal Nutrition Reviews, this claim can be sufficiently validated.

The review, which includes 3,000 children, enrolled in over 24 clinical trials published between the 1920s and the 1980s is, in fact, the basis for the research.

These trials show that Vitamin D supplementation led to a 50 percent drop in the incidence of tooth decay.

This is possibly due to the fact that Vitamin D helps the body absorb the tooth-building calcium it needs.

During the trials, the vitamin was delivered by a supplemental UV radiation or by diet products, for example cod liver oil, which can also contain it.

The trial was conducted by Phillippe Hujoel, PhD, DDS, of the University of Washington, and claimed his goal was the summarize the established research, where dental professionals could better assess the “take a fresh look at this Vitamin D question.”

However, Hujoel’s results are no surprise to those who have studied Vitamin D and dental health extensively.

“The findings from the University of Washington reaffirm the importance of Vitamin D for dental health,” Michael Holick, PhD, MD, professor of medicine at the Boston Univeristy Medical Center told Science Daily.

He additionally revealed that children who are Vitamin D deficient experience late teething and a risk of tooth decay.

“Dental caries, or decay, among children are increasing while vitamin D levels among many populations have dropped,” Hujoel said in the study. “Whether this is more than just a coincidence is open to debate,” he said. “In the meantime,pregnant women or young mothers can do little harm by realizing that vitamin D is essential to their offspring’s health,” also detailing that systematic reviews can also have contain flaws based on possible biases in some of the clinical trials tainted the results.

In the past few years, Vitamin D has been granted a reputation of being a vitamin cure-all. It may or not be, but its benefits in relation to oral health and the prevention of tooth decay is clearly apparent.

If you have any questions or would like to make an appointment with our dentists, Dr. Evelina Tolchinsky DDS or Dr. Inna Trogan DDS, then please call our office today! (718) 246-5677

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