Maternal Salivary Cariogenicity after Administration of Indian Cottage Cheese: An in Vivo Study

Background: Studies have shown a positive correlation between maternal cariogenicity and caries activity in the child. ECC has been shown to be a very common transmissible bacterial infection, usually passed from the primary caregiver to the child. Preventing dental caries in the mother would prove to be an effective tool to prevent caries development in the infant. One of the important ways in caries prevention is to reduce the bacterial load of the oral cavity. There is an increasing trend regarding the emergence of various natural constituents of diet for the prevention of dental caries. Indian cottage cheese, a normal constituent of the Indian diet is known to be a good source of calcium, phosphorous and protein. However, its effect on salivary cariogenicity is not much studied. The aim of this study was to assess the cariogenicity of pregnant women and lactating mothers, and to assess their levels of salivary calcium, phosphorous, alkaline phosphatase, salivary pH and streptococcus mutans before and after the administration of Indian cottage cheese.

Methodology: Baseline saliva samples were collected from 30 pregnant women and 30 lactating mothers. Samples were collected 5 mins, 15 mins, 25 mins after giving them 20 grams of Indian cottage cheese. Subjects were encouraged to consume Indian cottage cheese regularly in their diet. Saliva samples were collected at 24 hrs and 4 weeks interval. Salivary samples were assessed for the levels of calcium, phosphorous, alkaline phosphatase, pH and streptococcus mutans levels.

Results: It has been found that levels of salivary calcium, phosphorous, alkaline phosphatase, pH increases, while the levels of streptococcus mutans decreases after consumption of Indian cottage cheese and the result was statistically significant.

Conclusion: Substituting sugary snacks with Indian cottage cheese can be an early preventive method in reducing bacterial load in mothers, thus preventing ECC in the child.