A new study review by Dr. Philippe Hujoel of the University of Washington in Seattle reveals a link between vitamin D and a 50% reduction in the incidence of dental cavities among approximately 3,000 children ages 2 – 16.

According to United Press International, the study review included clinical trials from the 1920s to the 1980s on approximately 3,000 children between the ages of 2 and 16, from United States, Britain, Canada, Austria, New Zealand, and Sweden.

The review showed that vitamin D was associated with decreased levels of tooth decay.

The UPI further states that the American Medical Association and the U.S. National Research Council concluded around 1950 that vitamin D was beneficial in managing dental cavities. However, the American Dental Association disagreed based on the same evidence. In 1989, the National Research Council, despite new evidence supporting vitamin D’s cavities-fighting benefits, called the issue “unresolved.”

Dr. Hujoel told Medical Daily, “My main goal was to summarize the clinical trial database so that we could take a fresh look at this vitamin D question. Whether this is more than just a coincidence is open to debate. In the meantime, pregnant women or young mothers can do little harm by realizing that vitamin D is essential to their offspring’s health. Vitamin D does lead to teeth and bones that are better mineralized. One has to be careful with the interpretation of this systematic review. The trials had weaknesses which could have biased the result, and most of the trial participants lived in an era that differs profoundly from today’s environment.”

Dentists, what are your thoughts on vitamin D and tooth decay?

For more on this story see: Vitamin D Helps Prevent Tooth Decay