Wendy Parker, RDH

Gotta Have a Soda? 

            It’s summertime, the heat is in the air, the pool is inviting, and you have a drink of soda in your hand.  It’s hard not to when it is so available and so tempting everywhere you go!  Last year, my son and I made a New Year’s Resolution to go a whole year without soda.  And let me tell you, it was no easy task!  I can’t tell you how many times we ate pizza and my son and I had lemonade or water instead of a root beer.  Or how many times we went to the movies and remembered not to order a drink, and got a bottle of water instead. It was definitely a change in our habit, but after a while it became easier and easier not to have a Thirstbuster and to reach for water instead of a soda.

With that said, I always knew that sodas aren’t good for you, but after doing some research, I found this handy dandy little sheet that listed some of our family’s favorite drinks and their acidity levels.  Keep in mind that neutral levels are at a 7.0, and acidic levels are lower than that.  Your body, in order to function properly, and to avoid enamel damage in the mouth, needs to remain close to a neutral level as possible.

Acidity (pH scale) of Common Drinks

The pH scale measures the acidity of a solution. The lower the pH, the stronger the acid.   The stronger the acid, the more damage that is done to your child’s teeth.

Therefore, the drinks are listed from best to worst.

Drink Name                                     pH                                Sugar Content

Unsweetened Tea                                            7.2                                          0

Water                                                                     7.0 (neutral)                         0

Milk (2% of skim)                                            6.8                                          3.5

Instant Coffee (black)                                    5.5                                          0

Root Beer                                                             4.6                                          10.7

Diet Root Beer                                                   4.6                                          0

Tomato Juice                                                     4.5                                          4.2

7-Up/Sprite                                                        3.7                                          9

Juicy Juice                                                          3.5                                          4.6

Apple Juice                                                         3.4                                          4.8

Diet Cola                                                              3.4                                          0

Orange Juice                                                      3.3                                          6.3

Minute Maid                                                       3.2                                          11.9

Mountain Dew                                                  3.2                                          46

Snapple                                                                 3.2                                          7.6

Propel                                                                    3.2                                          0.4

V-8                                                                          3.1                                          5.5

Sierra Mist                                                           3                                              5

Kool-Aid Jammers                                          3                                              5.1

Gatorade                                                              2.9                                          21

Dr. Pepper                                                          2.9                                          40.5

Hawaiian Punch                                              2.8                                          10.2

Powerade                                                            2.7                                          15

Hi-C                                                                       2.7                                          5.5

Coke                                                                      2.5                                          27

Country Time Lemonade                            2.5                                          5.4

Pepsi                                                                      2.4                                          27

Sunny Delight                                                   2.4                                          6.3

Battery Acid*                                                      1

*Please do not drink battery acid, this was just added to the list to show scale of acidity

So, hopefully, next time you reach for a soda, I hope you remember this chart and for every can of soda you drink, you have to drink 32 oz. of water to neutralize the acid in your body!

Happy Drinking everyone!

Want to learn more? Visit us at

http://www.shalimarfamilydentistry.com

http://www.northstapleydentalcare.com

http://www.alamedadentalaz.com

http://www.dentistingilbert.com

Sources:

Click to access Acidity%20Sheet%20Sheet1.pdf