With all of the heat this summer, our “refreshment area” has become very popular, with bottled water “flying” out of the refrigerator  (The Keurig coffee machine seems to be most  popular in the early morning, especially for our patients being seen from 7 to 9 a.m.).

Speaking of bottled water, I was recently asked by a patient, whose son had developed a number of cavities in the past few years, if they would be better off drinking Cleveland tap water at home instead of bottled water, as tap water has fluoride in it.  The answer, of course, is that their teeth would be healthier and less prone to decay with tap water.  In fact, with beverages such as Gatorade and snacks like energy bars on the rise, we’re seeing more cavities than we did in the 1980’s and 1990’s.

So given the choice, at least when you are at home, try and drink water from the sink and brush your teeth with tap water.  Fluoride still remains one of the best defenses we have against cavities!