Good news, kids: Eating candy may be good for your teeth.
Unfortunately, it's only a special candy that scientists have engineered to fight plaque, the bacterium that leads to tooth decay.
American researchers, led by Kiet A. Ly from the University of Washington, have created a gummy bear with a tooth-protecting sugar called xylitol.
In a recent study, they found that giving children four of the special treats three times a day during school hours decreased their levels of plaque.
The findings are published in the open access journal BMC Oral Health.
Xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar-like compound found in many fruits and vegetables. It is often used as a sweetener. People also produce xylitol during the body's natural metabolic process.
Previous research has shown that regular consumption of xylitol can ward off the mutans streptococci bacteria that can cause tooth decay.
Xylitol chewing gums are available for adults. However, gum is considered a choking hazard for children.
"For xylitol to be successfully used in oral health promotion programmes amongst primary-school children, an effective means of delivering xylitol must be identified," Ly said in a statement. "Gummy bears would seem to be more ideal than chewing gum."
The study found that six weeks of snacking on the gummy bears significantly reduced bacteria levels in the children's mouths.
The findings contradict the advice of The Canadian Dental Association, which recommends that people ward off tooth decay and gum disease by avoiding candies that can stick to teeth. However, xylitol is known to stimulate saliva production, which cleans the teeth and neutralizes enamel-wearing acid.
While the researchers admitted that the program of feeding kids gummy bears three times during the school day may interrupt classes, the teachers who participated in the research found it easy to incorporate snack times into the children's day.
A clinical trial to confirm the findings of this study is now being conducted in the East Cleveland primary school district in Ohio.
