Sugar-Sweetened Beverages, Artificial Additives and Oral Health Outcomes: Public Health and Policy Perspectives

The field of oral health research has increasingly focused on the impact of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) as a critical driver of dental caries and related oral diseases globally. Despite strong evidence linking free sugar intake—primarily from SSBs—not only to dental caries but also to a broader range of diet-related noncommunicable diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, consumption levels remain stubbornly high, particularly among socioeconomically disadvantaged and young populations. Recent investigations have reinforced the significant burden of SSB-related oral disease throughout the life course, highlighting patterns of early exposure in infancy and childhood that translate to lasting oral health consequences. This includes early-life feeding practices—such as frequent use of juice, sweetened milk drinks, and other sugar-containing beverages in bottles or sippy cups—which can contribute to early childhood caries and shape longer-term taste preferences and consumption habits. Emerging literature also demonstrates that SSB-related oral health harms are closely intertwined with wider nutrition and NCD challenges, and that both are shaped by persistent social and structural inequities.Efforts to address the harms of SSBs have seen the rapid expansion of public policy interventions, including taxation, labeling regulations, marketing restrictions, and beverage standard reforms across diverse settings. Impact studies, especially from Asia and Africa, indicate that well-designed fiscal policies can curb SSB consumption and potentially improve oral health outcomes, while also contributing to broader diet-related disease prevention, though the magnitude and distribution of these effects vary. However, important uncertainties remain regarding the mechanisms and equity impacts underlying these policies, as well as the synergistic potential of combining policy, clinical, and community strategies. Oral health professionals are increasingly recognized as key stakeholders in both shaping and evaluating these interventions, yet their role in integrated prevention frameworks is still under-explored.This Research Topic aims to synthesize and advance multidisciplinary knowledge on the oral health impacts of SSB consumption and related policy interventions. The topic seeks to elucidate both the direct and indirect pathways linking SSBs, social determinants, and oral disease, analyze the effectiveness and equity of diverse policy approaches, and define the contributions of oral health professionals and systems within integrated NCD prevention agendas. In doing so, it will also consider how oral health evidence can strengthen wider nutrition and chronic disease policy discussions, while maintaining oral health as the primary focus of the collection. Additionally, it strives to foster collaboration among clinicians, researchers, policymakers, and community partners to build innovative, equitable solutions for SSB-related oral health challenges. It also aims to advance understanding of biological mechanisms—including the oral microbiome and related oral ecological changes—through which SSB exposure contributes to caries risk and other oral diseases, and how these mechanisms may inform prevention and policy evaluation.Given the broad and interconnected nature of SSB consumption, this Research Topic will encompass research across the life course, different policy domains, and multiple disciplinary perspectives, but it will specifically focus on oral health impacts, policy evaluation, and the integration of oral health into NCD strategies. We invite articles that address, but are not limited to, the following themes: • Global and population-specific burdens of SSB-related oral disease and caries, including early childhood caries and early-life exposure patterns • Behavioral, psychosocial, and environmental determinants of SSB intake across diverse settings, including early-life feeding practices, caregiver influences, and household norms • Fiscal, regulatory, and non-fiscal policy interventions and their effects on consumption, oral health, broader diet-related NCD prevention, and equity • The role of clinical, community, and systems-level interventions in reducing SSB intake and preventing oral disease • Communication, marketing, and the influence of industry, media, and public perception on SSB policy acceptance and behavioral change • Economic evaluation and health systems effects of SSB policies, including cost-effectiveness and equity implications • Innovations in data science, measurement, and methods to assess SSB consumption and policy impacts in oral health • Oral microbiome and related biological pathways linking SSB exposure to caries development, prevention, and population-level oral health outcomes Topic editors: Ahmad Zare Javid, Mohammed S. Razzaque, Mushfiq H Shaikh Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/76971/sugar-sweetened-beverages-artificial-additives-and-oral-health-outcomes-public-health-and-policy-perspectives