Dental plaque regrowth studies to evaluate chewing gum formulations incorporating magnolia bark extract

Abstract

The plaque inhibiting properties of magnolia bark extract (MBE) were assessed in a volunteer trial following the consumption of various sugar-free chewing gum formulations over a period of 4-days. Paired t-tests demonstrated significant (p<0.15) differences between the placebo and a gum containing MBE (0.4%) plus lauramide arginine ethyl ester (LAE) (0.5%) with respect to% plaque coverage (36.3% vs 34.0%) and area of plaque fluorescence (109.4mm2 vs 75.2mm2). These findings were supported by microbiological counts of total salivary bacteria (7.77log10cfu/ml vs 7.45log10cfu/ml) as well as Streptococcus spp. (6.76log10cfu/ml vs 6.29log10cfu/ml). MBE (0.4%)+LAE (0.5%) delivered by chewing gum had a moderate inhibitory effect on plaque formation and salivary bacteria. Limiting the formation of dental plaque and salivary bacteria, specifically oral streptococci, could contribute towards an improvement in oral health with respect to gum disease and caries.