A daily swish
of mouthwash, which can contain oils such as eucalyptol, menthol, thymol,
alcohol and sorbitol, doesn't affect dental work, a U.S. study found.
J. Anthony von
Fraunhofer, professor of biomaterials science at the University of Maryland
in Baltimore, examined mouth rinses and the effects they have on restorative
materials in the mouth. Restorative materials studied included amalgams
used for fillings, glass ionomers used to cement gold and ceramic crowns
to teeth and composite fillers that are tooth-colored, an Academy of General
Dentistry said in a news release.
Researchers
subjected the materials to continuous exposure of mouth rinses and distilled
water for 10 days, and then fashioned mouth guards containing specimens
of the restorative material. Volunteer patients wore the mouth guards 12
hours a day for 10 days, rinsing twice a day with a commercial mouthwash.
The study found
that even long-term exposure to a mouth rinse containing essential oils
had minimal effect on the strength or surface of dental restorations of
any kind.
"This is a positive
finding since patients are often concerned that rinsing the mouth with
alcohol-containing mouthwashes could affect their fillings," von Fraunhofer
said.
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