Abstract
Knowledge about fluoride delivery to oral fluids from
foods cooked with fluoridated water and salt is scarce, and no study has
evaluated fluoride concentrations in saliva or biofilm during meal
consumption. In this randomized double-blind crossover study, 12
volunteers ingested meals (rice, beans, meat, and legumes) prepared with
nonfluoridated water and salt (control group), fluoridated water (0.70
mg F/L; water group), and fluoridated salt (183.7 mg F/kg; salt group).
Whole saliva was collected before meal ingestion, during mastication,
and up to 2 h after meal ingestion. Dental biofilm was collected before
and immediately after meal ingestion. Fluoride concentrations in saliva
and dental biofilm were determined by an ion-specific electrode. The
mean (±standard deviation;
n = 4) fluoride concentrations in
meals prepared for the control, water, and salt groups were 0.039 ±
0.01, 0.43 ± 0.04, and 1.71 ± 0.32 μg F/g, respectively. The three
groups had significantly different fluoride concentrations in saliva
collected during mastication (
p < 0.0001) and after meal ingestion (
p
< 0.04; salt > water > control). The fluoride concentration in
saliva returned to baseline 30 min after meal ingestion in the water
group but remained high for up to 2 h in the salt group (
p = 0.002). The fluoride concentration in biofilm fluid differed only between the salt and control groups (
p
= 0.008). The mastication of foods cooked with fluoridated water and
salt increases fluoride concentrations in oral fluids and may contribute
to the local effect of these community-based fluoride interventions on
caries control.
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