BUFFERING CAPACITY AS AN INDICATOR OF THE CARIOGENIC POTENTIAL

The "Early Childhood Caries" is a serious oral condition that occurs during the first 3 years of life and is associated with the early intake of sugary foods, drinks, milk and snacks. The carbohydrates present within the infant formula may be utilized by the oral microorganisms, especially the mutans streptococci to form a sticky plaque matrix that enables the microorganisms to adhere to the teeth and produce organic acids which with time can demineralize the teeth1 . Although infant formula forms an important part of an infants diet, nevertheless, information regarding its cariogenecity or buffering capacity property is remarkably sparse2 . Our study included estimation of the buffering capacity of the 14 infants formulas available commercially and 3 control solution namely water, 10% sucrose and bovine whole milk. The conclusion of our results showed that buffer capacity varied among the infant formulas, with some formulas unable to buffer the addition of acid. Further research is needed to more fully understand the relationship of infant formulas to ECC.