The efficacy of baking soda dentifrice in controlling plaque and gingivitis: A systematic review.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To test the efficacy of a dentifrice containing baking soda (BS), compared with dentifrice without BS for controlling plaque and gingivitis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

MEDLINE-PubMed and Cochrane-CENTRAL were searched. The inclusion criteria were randomized controlled clinical trials including healthy participants aged 18 years or older. Studies were selected that compared the effect of toothbrushing with a dentifrice with and without BS on the clinical parameters of plaque and gingivitis. Data were extracted from the selected studies, and a meta-analysis was performed.

RESULTS:

The search retrieved 21 eligible publications. Among these papers, 43 comparisons were provided, with 23 involving a single-use design and 20 being evaluations with a follow-up. Negative controls were found, or positive controls for which various active ingredients had been used. The included studies showed a moderate overall potential risk of bias and considerable heterogeneity. The meta-analysis of plaque scores from the single-brushing experiments showed that BS dentifrice (BS-DF) was associated with significantly better outcomes than the negative control dentifrices (DiffM -0.20; P < 0.0001; 95% CI: [-0.27; -0.12]) or the positive control dentifrices (DiffM -0.18; P < 0.0001; 95% CI: [-0.24; -0.12]). This finding was only confirmed in studies that used a follow-up design as compared to a negative control (DiffM -0.19; P = 0.01; 95% CI: [-0.34; -0.04]). The indices of gingival bleeding also improved when the comparison was a negative control (DiffM -0.08; P = 0.02; 95% CI: [-0.16; -0.01] and (DiffM -0.13; P < 0.001; 95% CI: [-0.18; -0.08]. However, for the gingival index scores, the meta-analysis did not reveal any significant differences.

CONCLUSION:

BS-DF showed promising results with respect to plaque removal in single-use studies. However, the finding was partially substantiated in follow-up studies. Studies that assessed bleeding scores indicated that a small reduction can be expected from BS, relative to a control product.

• Authors: Cees Valkenburg, Yasmin Kashmour, Angelique Dao, G A Fridus Van der Weijden, Dagmar Else Slot
• Journal: International journal of dental hygiene (Int J Dent Hyg) Vol. 17 Issue 2 Pg. 99-116 (May 2019) ISSN: 1601-5037 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 30734996 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article, Systematic Review)
• Copyright: © 2019 The Authors. International Journal of Dental Hygiene Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Chemical References

• Dentifrices
• Sodium Bicarbonate

Topics

• Databases, Bibliographic
• Dental Plaque (prevention & control, therapy)
• Dentifrices
• Gingivitis (prevention & control, therapy)
• Humans
• Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
• Sodium Bicarbonate
• Toothbrushing