Can I use xylitol immediately after a meal or should I wait 30 minutes before brushing my teeth (like with eating something sour, so as to avoid damaging the enamel)?
Actually, it’s advantageous to use xylitol directly after a meal, for two reasons. 1. For one thing, xylitol strongly stimulates saliva production and flow, and components of (healthy) saliva stemming from the food ingested will neutralise any acids present and remineralise teeth whose surface has been slightly etched, and the earlier after the meal xylitol is taken, the more effective this will be (compare Tooth remineralisation & demineralisation, saliva & pH). 2. Xylitol inhibits the activity of acid-producing bacteria. It is generally correct that one should wait after eating acidic foodstuffs before brushing one’s teeth, since the tooth surface will be slightly acid-softened in which case brushing one’s teeth immediately would scrub off some of the enamel as well. While you wait the recommended timespan, components of the saliva are supposed to reharden the softened enamel surface. This process however might be accelerated using xylitol. In this case, one should ideally start with
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