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Nutritional Breakdown and Ingredients
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Plaque Acids
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Dry Mouth
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Fermentable Carbs and Probiotic
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Arginine and Bicarbonate
Michelle Strange [Ad 00:00:00 – 00:02:09]
And Andrew Johnston:
A Tale of Two Hygienists presents this week’s TIPisode: Quick and easy tips to keep you up to date and presented by the experts in the profession. Now, get ready for your unofficial TIPisode, this week brought to you by Basic Bites.
Michelle Strange: Hey, y’all. Hold on…let me finish chewing my Basic Bite. I knew I was going to record this little TIPisode about Basic Bites, and I started craving one, so I indulged.
I’ve had Basic Bites like on my desk here, in my car, always in my kitchen for a while now. They are my treat of choice for my nephews and such a great way to have a little, you know, snack, a little treat, something sweet after lunch.
So let me tell you a little bit about Basic Bites and why I’ve been a big fan. They are sugar free, they’re only 15 calories, and they come in chocolate and caramel. And, if you’re wondering, chocolate’s my favorite. But Basic Bites has this breakthrough ingredient that counteract plaque acids and help maintain oral homeostasis.
Yeah. You heard me. This chewy little treat is good for counteracting the damage that a low pH and an acid attack post snack session can have on our oral health. And we for decades have known that bacteria living in dental plaque convert sugars from the diet to acids, and over time, this can damage teeth. You can probably see why this is the treat of choice for my nephews.
It is also great for individuals who suffer from dry mouth and those who consume maybe a little too many fermentable carbs. The chews actually act as a prebiotic to activate the mouth’s natural processes for protecting teeth. I mean, it’s crazy.
So you chew saliva-based nutrients, which are arginine bicarbonate and calcium carbonate. They help maintain enamel health by nourishing beneficial pH-raising bacteria, and they immediately counteract plaque acids, they help sustain a normal acid-base pH balance on the tooth surfaces, and they support the remineralization process.
We know we can’t always get, like, our patients to see the importance of choosing a better diet, eating more vegetables, and ultimately benefiting their oral and overall health, but you can make a simple recommendation that they finish a meal with a chew or replace their candy with a Basic Bites chew. I swear it is the more effortless [sic] switch they will ever make because these are really delicious, and I’m kind of a snob.
I know many of us are familiar with calcium carbonate because this is a mineral found in saliva, and it’s super important for remineralization. And arginine may not have been on your radar, but it’s very promising. It’s a common amino acid naturally found in healthy saliva, and arginine is a key substrate in saliva that beneficial bacteria and biofilms metabolize to produce an alkali. So this pH-raising process results in immediate and sustained buffering that can neutralize sugar acids and help keep teeth in their healthy pH balance.
Bicarbonate, as many of us know, is an important acid neutralizing buffer. Also, it’s naturally present in saliva. And so, together, arginine and bicarb help maintain the right acid-alkaline pH balance on tooth surfaces, and that supports the remineralization process just by eating candy, y’all.
So you guys know I love the science part, so I wanted to share a little bit of that with you, okay? Landmark studies by Kleinberg identified that bacteria in plaque are able to produce base from nitrogenous substrates, which are provided mostly from saliva. In this way, it becomes possible to raise the pH or counter the pH-lowering ability of the plaque when it is producing or has produced acid from a fermentable carbohydrate. This led to the concept of plaque being a collection of microbial communities throughout the mouth each engaged in a common acid-base metabolism.
The arginine component of Basic Bites favors the formation of a base by the dental plaque bacteria to counter acid production. Simultaneously, the arginine favors the presence of arginilitic over non-arginilitic acetogens, creating the maintenance of a healthier base-producing plaque microflora.
Listen to that again, y’all. Like, hit the “back 15 seconds” button on your podcast app, and listen to that again because in the mouth, arginine is normally and mainly available from readily degradable peptides and less readily degradable saliva proteins.
Calcium is also an essential component of Basic Bites. It supports tooth enamel by mass action and reduces the release of calcium from tooth mineral when attacked by plaque acids. Calcium precedes the release of phosphate from enamel, dentin, and cementum in an acid-producing environment. This means that it is better to use calcium rather than phosphate as a way of maintaining healthy teeth.
Additionally, in an optimal, neutral, or elevated pH, calcium is available to begin the remineralization process and help support the structure of intact enamel. So nourishing the dental plaque biofilm with substrates that encourage alkali production may inhibit tooth demineralization and favorably change that microbial metabolism and composition within the dental plaque, consequently being linked to the ecology management of dental caries. So you probably can see why this has been a staple in my kitchen, by my desk, and in my car.
The chews are truly delicious, and like I said, I’m a bit of a chocolate snob, so that’s saying a lot that it’s so delicious. And I have no guilt for bribing my nephews when they — when I want to buckle them up in their car seat. And let me tell you, I have even gotten my family on board with this. So, instead of giving the kiddos candy, they get this treat that’s good for their oral health.
And, FYI, we do not give it to kids under six as the instructions suggest, just so you know.
You can learn more about Basic Bites and the science behind the ingredients at basicbites.com. But, more importantly, you got to give these a try, and let me know what you think.
Thanks for listening to another TIPisode, and thank you to Basic Bites for sponsoring this week’s episode. You can find more about their products at basicbites.com. Professionals can go to basicbites.com/professional. And don’t forget to hit the “subscribe” button in your podcast app, follow us on Facebook or Instagram, and head over to our website, ataleoftwohygienists.com, to sign up for our newsletter. We always appreciate ratings and reviews. Thanks for listening to your unofficial dental hygiene podcast.
[CLOSING MUSIC]
