Juice DecayJuice decay is an increasing problem in the community. A very concerned mother was in the office last week with her 3-year-old daughter. The child was having lots of pain with her teeth. We had diagnosed 10 cavities and her mother couldn’t understand how the cavities occurred.
I explained to her that fruit juice contains large amounts of sugars. Overexposing teeth to these sugars from fruit juices can often causes cavities just like Sprite, Coca-Cola or Mountain Dew would. Most pediatricians recommend limiting juice to 4-6 ounces per day. We recommend offering juice at meal times and then brushing afterwards.
Never allow your child to sip juice throughout the day and never put him/her to bed with juice or milk in a “sippy cup.”
Moderate amounts of 100% fruit juice can be a tasty way to meet some of your child’s daily fruit requirements. But too much juice can lead to tooth decay, diarrhea and even obesity in some cases.
Dr. John Gennantonio
