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dental health


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#61 systemicanomaly

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Posted 16 April 2006 - 08:05 AM

I tried using Xylitol as a sweetener in my green tea, but it did very little to sweeten the taste, even with relatively large amounts.  I was determined to stick with it because of the dental health benefits, but my gf promptly switched back to stevia for her tea.  I started growing jealous about how much better her tea was than mine, and eventually I said the hell with xylitol and switched back too.  Just my experience.

I am interested in trying Spry though, maybe it works better in a gum.



FO, are you drinking your green tea hot or cold? I usually drink mine cold & find that I don't need very much Xylitol at all... about 1 gm per 8 oz of green tea. If you've got more of a sweet tooth, then perhaps 2 gm of Xylitol per 8 oz serving of cold green tea might be more to your liking. I find that even unsweetened cold water can satisfy a craving for a sweet drink so, perhaps a cold drink requires less sweetening than a hot one.

I mistakenly bought a xylitol-stevia mix (NOW Foods) recently rather than the pure Xylitol that I usually get. The Xylitol-Stevia mix cost a little bit more than the pure xylitol but perhaps a similar mixture would suit your needs... you'd still get the dental health benefits along with the taste that you prefer.

I've found that Altoids is using Xylitol in their sugar-free (Cinnamon) chewing gum. Xylitol appears as the first ingredient with a couple of other sugar alcohols (Sorbitol & Mannitol) high on the ingredients list. Note that this gum also has 2 artificial sweeteners (Sucralose & Acesulfame K) much lower on the list. I don't really know if artificial sweeteners pose any health risks or not, but I use so few products that contain them that I really don't worry about it too much at all.

#62 xanadu

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Posted 17 April 2006 - 12:08 AM

For what it's worth, my sense of taste still has not come back. I'm sure it's due to the xylitol usage. I used it all day long in my drinking water. Now, fruits and things do not taste good anymore. I used to love dates as a treat now and then but now they just taste greasy and I avoid them. Bananas are the same way. Neither of those are all that good for you so mabe I shouldn't complain. It's probably a rare side effect because no one else has reported it but it has altered my sense of taste perhaps permanently.

#63 systemicanomaly

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Posted 18 April 2006 - 09:42 AM

Don't know if it's been mentioned but NOW Foods has some reasonbly-priced xylitol products... XyliWhite toothpaste gel and XyliWhite mouthwash.


For what it's worth, my sense of taste still has not come back. I'm sure it's due to the xylitol usage. I used it all day long in my drinking water. Now, fruits and things do not taste good anymore. I used to love dates as a treat now and then but now they just taste greasy and I avoid them. Bananas are the same way. Neither of those are all that good for you so mabe I shouldn't complain. It's probably a rare side effect because no one else has reported it but it has altered my sense of taste perhaps permanently.



Since when are bananas not all that good for you? Perhaps if they are considerably under-ripe or overripe (higher sugar content?), they may not be ideal. However bananas are a great endurance food... known to be easily digested and very high in both potassium & vitamin b6. Dates are very high in fiber and potassium but are also high-caloric since they contain high levels of sugar.

I'm curious as to how you are so sure that xylitol was responsible for the changes in your sense of taste. Is it possible that there is another reason for the taste changes? Just how much xylitol were you ingesting on a daily basis? I use a couple of grams per day with no ill effects. I've heard that ppl have been known to ingest 400 grams daily for long periods of time with no adverse effects. I've read that xylitol has no knonw toxicity.

Xylitol is found naturally in many fruits, plums & raspberries in particular. Like other sugar alcohols, xylitol has a mild laxative effect in high dosages... but then high levels of consumption of many fruits will have this same effect.

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#64 xanadu

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Posted 18 April 2006 - 10:10 PM

The changes to my sense of taste occured after a few weeks of xylitol usage. I was using no other new compound at the time. That is just too much of a coincidence. It seems like sweet things no longer taste the same. Vegetables taste just fine. Oddly enough, some nuts taste differently. I no longer enjoy pistachios. I think it was because I drank xylitol all day long in my water. It was not a large dose at all, less than 1 gm a day after the first few days. I reduced the dose more and more. I got so I could detect the taste of xylitol even at tiny amounts.

#65 Brian

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Posted 24 April 2006 - 03:50 AM

Switching subject slighty, I've had good success recently with one of those Crest/Philips Intelliclean electric toothbrushes. You can pick these up pretty cheap on Ebay.

Use it twice a day, plus normal mouthwash, no flossing, and at my recent checkup had almost completely clean teeth (after 6 months) for the first time in my life. Usually I have a ton of scraping needing to be done. It was so rad, the staff actually asked for advice on what I use.

#66 wydell

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Posted 12 July 2008 - 02:47 PM

Hmm, I wonder why xylitol is not more popular. It tastes good (just like sugar) and it seems to have benefits (at least in rats or mice) with respect to skin and bone. I wonder if those benefits tranfer to humans. I think there are studies on humans that suggest that it does help prevent cavities.

I try to eat some by the spoonful after I eat at home and by mints when I am out.

Some people have noted that xylitol makes their teeth feel cleaner. I have noticed that effect as well.


My pound of xylitol arrived today. I mixed 1/2 tsp with my glass of water. The taste wasn't that noticeable, I'm sure I'll get used to it. I'll report back in a few days or so on how it seems to affect plaque. Ajnast, what benefits have you noticed or is it hard to tell?



#67 wydell

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Posted 14 July 2008 - 03:37 AM

I bought a xylitol brownie today from Whole Foods. The maker was called Shrewd Foods. I thought it was pretty good and would consider trying to make mine own. I wish they sold xylitol ice cream.

#68 Lotus

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Posted 16 July 2008 - 10:13 PM

:~ although I do still like psytrance (I.M. always comes to mind), I don't get down in it that much anymore, not since I was a teenager. I'm more civilized now ;o)

and green tea has been mentioned in previous threads, not sure 'bout this one.


Ah, psytrance...Solipse, Boom festivals, forest parties. I miss those times. I wonder how this scene has developed the last couple of years. I'd like to dance again when I get my health back...:~

#69 JLL

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Posted 20 December 2008 - 01:35 PM

Green Tea, Black Tea & Dental Health

I recently started using xylitol chewing gum again. I stopped when I read studies that said more mercury is released from amalgam fillings when you chew gum. I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place here, because my teeth get cavities pretty easily.

#70 wydell

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Posted 21 December 2008 - 05:05 AM

uhh, how about sucking on xylitol mints. Also, if mercury is released from chewing gum, would the same thing occur when chewing food? You probably can't go IV.

Green Tea, Black Tea & Dental Health

I recently started using xylitol chewing gum again. I stopped when I read studies that said more mercury is released from amalgam fillings when you chew gum. I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place here, because my teeth get cavities pretty easily.



#71 JLL

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Posted 21 December 2008 - 11:26 AM

uhh, how about sucking on xylitol mints. Also, if mercury is released from chewing gum, would the same thing occur when chewing food? You probably can't go IV.

Green Tea, Black Tea & Dental Health

I recently started using xylitol chewing gum again. I stopped when I read studies that said more mercury is released from amalgam fillings when you chew gum. I'm kind of between a rock and a hard place here, because my teeth get cavities pretty easily.



Yes, chewing food releases mercury too. But you usually chew food for maybe 20 minutes per meal or so, whereas some people (including me) would chew gum throughout the day.

#72 VampIyer

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Posted 30 December 2008 - 03:43 AM

Brushing once daily? How the hell... and NOT brushing the backs of your teeth? That's just ridiculously lazy.

I've been taking great care of my teeth (by these standards) from the start and they're in just TERRIBLE shape. Even as a kid I experienced rapid decay despite having a low-sugar diet.

I'm guessing my mouth just isn't a hospitable environment for teeth.

I use colgate total + xyliwhite + mouthwash. I'm thinking about getting something specifically for remineralization (MI paste, or one of its competitors).

#73 chrono

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Posted 27 June 2010 - 08:47 AM

For what it's worth, my sense of taste still has not come back. I'm sure it's due to the xylitol usage. I used it all day long in my drinking water. Now, fruits and things do not taste good anymore. I used to love dates as a treat now and then but now they just taste greasy and I avoid them. Bananas are the same way.

I'm assuming not, but has anyone else noticed any untoward effects of xylitol gum/toothpaste/etc on taste?

#74 Athanasios

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Posted 27 June 2010 - 02:55 PM

I'm assuming not, but has anyone else noticed any untoward effects of xylitol gum/toothpaste/etc on taste?

I have noticed this effect from any artificial sweetener. In me, it is kind of like the difference between being used to salty foods versus not being used to salty foods, so I guess you could extend it to sweeteners, regular sugar, and salt. I am pretty sure that I am a super taster and that may enter into it as well.

I put the xylitol in my mouthwash and, when in drinks, drink it down fairly quickly, or in food or baked goods, without taste problems. The taste effect only happens to me with near constant exposure. I think it works by just getting 12 grams worth in your diet, even without direct exposure to teeth on the way in. This assumption was based partly on papers that found it recirculating into saliva after intake. They are hard to find because most studies are on gum and whatnot but here is an example of systemic effects:

Int Dent J. 1976 Mar;26(1):14-28.
Dental aspects of the consumption of xylitol and fructose diets.
Mäkinen KK.

Abstract
126 voluntary test persons, divided into three groups, were put for two years on a strict diet with regard to the sweetener used (sucrose, fructose, and xylitol). The test persons were investigated in the frame of a versatile clinical, radiographical, biochemical, microbiological, and medical research plan. The consumption of the fructose and xylitol diets did not result in any pathological changes in the test persons' whole saliva, plaque, blood, and urine samples. The consumption of the xylitol diet reduced the incidence of dental caries by approximately 90 per cent when compared to sucrose consumption. In the fructose group the reduction was 30 per cent. Xylitol consumption reduced the growth of dental plaque by 50 per cent during the whole two-year period. It also reduced the concentration of lactate in plaque and whole saliva and the ability of plaque and whole saliva to yield reducing sugars from sucrose. Simultaneously, the activity of the salivary lactoperoxidase was strongly increased. These and certain other dentally advantageous chemical changes indicated that the mechanism of the xylitol effect is dual, being partly systemic and related to a selective effect on the production of salivary enzymes and on the electrolyte concentration of whole saliva, and partly local, depressing the growth of cariogenic and certain other microorganisms.

PMID: 1062356


Edited by Athanasios, 27 June 2010 - 05:42 PM.

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