What Happens When You Mix Pepsi and a Hard Boiled Egg?

October 13, 2010   16 Comments

Most of the discussion on drinking soda has focused on high fructose corn syrup and its detrimental effects on blood sugar and weight. But, what about your teeth?

Today, we are taking a page from a kindergarten teacher's playbook (thanks, Greta!). This teacher uses a very visual experiment to help her class of 5 year olds understand what happens to teeth when you drink soda.

I have heard that if you immerse a baby tooth in Coke it will dissolve in 24 hours. I checked into this myth and it isn't true. What IS true is that soda contains acid that will dissolve the enamel of teeth over time.

Our experiment is simple. Take a hard boiled egg and immerse it in Pepsi or Coke for 24 hours and analyze your result.

Well, look at that!

The obvious conclusion for the 5 year olds is that you need to brush your teeth. They take toothbrushes and scrub all the color off the egg to mimic brushing their teeth.

But, what does this experiment mean for us grown ups? Well, I found a study that concluded that prolonged exposure to soda can lead to significant tooth enamel loss (see here: Acids in Popular Sodas Erode Tooth Enamel).

From the article:

The erosive potential of colas is 10 times that of fruit juices in just the first three minutes of drinking.

I doubt this is going to surprise anyone that the powerful combination of sugar, acid, and artificial color isn't great for your teeth. Back in my post on Monster Assault and Mountain Dew, I reported that a kid had over 15 areas of decay on his teeth from drinking Monster. The parents had a $6000 dental bill. YIKES!

My suggestion is to treat soda like a treat. Don't drink it very often and when you do - brush your teeth soon after you drink it.

Please share this post with your soda drinking family, friends, and co-workers. It might help them kick their habit.

Please share your thoughts on this soda experiment.

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