Healthy Drinks and Tasty Toothpaste Primary Science Enhancement Project.

Healthy Drinks and Tasty Toothpaste

Primary Science Enhancement Project

What is industry?

Where things are made.

Jobs in Industry

Administration Officer

Communications Officer

Personnel Manager

Resources Manager

Health and Safety Officer

What do you know about teeth?

Most babies are born with no teeth showing (the teeth are forming inside the gums).

When the baby is around 6 months to a year old, the milk teeth will grow.

There will be 20 milk teeth.

Milk teeth fall out when a child is aged between from about 6 to 14 years old.

These are replaced by 32 Permanent teeth (also called the adult teeth).

What Causes Tooth Decay?

Everyone has bacteria in their mouth.

Bacteria and bits of food build up to form a thin layer called plaque.

If you eat sugary food, the bacteria in plaque will feed on the sugar.

When bacteria feed on sugar they make acid.

Acid in the plaque causes your teeth to decay and then gums become diseased.

It can look like this . . . . . .

Or worse………

Tooth decay warning over soft

drinksSome drinks companies are making juice drinks that are pretending to be healthy, but are damaging the teeth and gums of children.

Some of the UK’s most popular brands of juice drink contain more sugar than cola. This is causing damage to children’s teeth!

Some “healthy” drinks tested had no real fruit juice, others had so much hidden sugar they were causing tooth decay in young children.

We at Sparkle Toothpaste Company have been asked by Bubble Drinks Ltd to make a toothpaste ideal for cleaning teeth after a sugary drink. They want to keep their drinks tasty and sweet without rotting people's teeth.

We need you to:

  We look forward to hearing from you with your results.

Mike Simmonds

Research Manager

1. Find out how sugary drinks can damage teeth.

2. Investigate which drinks are the most likely to cause tooth decay.

Our Question is:

Which drinks are harmful to our teeth?

How will we investigate this?