Journal of Dental Research, Vol 68, 1102-1104, Copyright © 1989 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
The effect of sugar cane chewing on the development of dental caries
J. E. Frencken, P. Rugarabamu and J. Mulder
Institute of Preventive and Community Dentistry, Dental School, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
In Tanzania, the effect of sugar cane chewing on the development of caries
was investigated. Two groups were selected; those who had easy access to
sugar cane (sugar cane cutters) and those who did not (sisal plant
workers). These groups had a similar socio-economic background, had similar
levels of fluoride in drinking water, consumed similar amounts of refined
sugar per day, but had a significant difference in number of pieces of
sugar cane chewed per day. The caries prevalence in both groups was low
compared with that in adult populations in Western countries. Sugar cane
cutters had significantly higher mean DMT/S scores than sisal plant
workers. Analysis of Variance revealed a weakly significant effect of sugar
cane chewing on the caries scores (p = 0.02 from DMT and p = 0.05 for DMS).
Results of the study suggest that sugar cane chewing in large quantities
over a long period has a caries-promoting effect in populations with a low
caries prevalence, and further, that sugar sales figures reported for such
populations are of questionable reliability.
