People are living longer. Their hard-working teeth don’t always accompany them down the home stretch. As a result, dentures are going to be necessary for billions of people around the globe.
Great advances have made artificial sets of teeth more comfortable and functional, as well as no longer fashioned from trees. However, a common problem is the tendency for Candida Albicans to form a film on the strips. This biofilm leads to candidiasis of the mouth, called thrush.
Researchers in the dental field wondered if readily available probiotics could influence the biofilm development.
C. Albicans was cultured on denture strips. Four over- the-counter probiotic products were introduced in cell-free or supernatant form.
Results:
Lactobacillus appeared to be a common ingredient in those formulas reducing film on the denture strips.
The authors wrote that the “cell-free supernatants provided a stronger and significant inhibitory effect on biofilm formation than their bacterial counterparts…”
And as obligatory, more research is necessary. But this could eventually be an economical and healthier therapy for that discomfiting C. Albicans. The report appears in the Journal of Dental Hygiene.
When teeth are still intact, periodontal disease can strike. The usual therapy—digging beneath the gums—is fairly aggressive and so alternatives are welcomed.
There are some excellent advances in the use of probiotics and periodontal disease. Read the report in the Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Science.
With antibiotic resistance growing, probiotics are indeed being looked at in periodontal therapy. Researchers attest that the “time has come to shift the paradigm of treatment from specific bacteria elimination to altering bacterial ecology by probiotics.” This paper in Journal of Dental and Allied Sciences reviews some of this evidence.
Meanwhile, take care of your teeth. Ditch the sticky foods and indulge in prebiotic and probiotic-rich foods.