Lippia sidoides Dentifrice More Effective Than Fluoride Toothpaste Against S. mutans in Children: Study
Researchers have found in a new study that using 0.8% Lippia sidoides dentifrice three times daily for 30 days resulted in a greater and longer-lasting reduction of Streptococcus mutans—up to 360 days—compared with standard fluoride toothpaste in children with dental caries. Lippia sidoides is a typical shrub from Brazil that has been used in traditional medicine.
Dental caries is the most prevalent dental disease, especially in childhood, and involves a dynamic pathological process that leads to a microbial shift towards survival and overgrowth of acidogenic and aciduric bacterial species, with interactions between the biofilm and carbohydrate exposure directly associated with lesion formation. The objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of a dentifrice containing 0.8% Lippia sidoides Cham oil (LSO) against Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) in children.
This was a randomised and controlled study. Forty participants, aged between 6 and 12 years, of both sexes, with the presence of at least one carious lesion, were recruited to participate in the study. Participants were randomly assigned to two different groups. The first group (G1) received topical treatment with 0.8% Lippia sidoides Cham oil dentifrice, and the control group (G2) received fluoridated common dentifrice for brushing their teeth for 1 min thrice a day. Saliva was collected at seven time points: baseline (D0), 5 days (D5), 15 days (D15), 30 days (D30), 60 days (D60), 180 days (D180), and 1 year (D365). The Lippia sidoides Cham oil dentifrice group showed a significant reduction in S. mutans levels at day 30 compared with baseline (p < 0.05), and this reduction was maintained at days 60, 180, and 365. In contrast, the control group demonstrated a temporary reduction at day 30, with bacterial levels returning to baseline by day 365. Intergroup comparisons revealed significantly lower S. mutans counts in the Lippia sidoides Cham oil group from day 30 onward, with differences persisting through 1 year (p < 0.05).
The Lippia sidoides Cham oil dentifrice 0.8%, when used thrice daily for 30 days, showed a greater reduction in S. mutans for up to 360 days when compared to a common fluoride dentifrice in children with caries.
Reference:
Lobo, Patrícia Leal Dantas, et al. "Efficacy of Lippia Sidoides Containing-Dentifrice in Children With Dental Caries: a Clinical Study." International Journal of Dentistry, vol. 2026, 2026, p. 4772820.
Keywords:
Lippia, sidoides, Dentifrice, More, Effective, Fluoride, Toothpaste, S. mutans, Children, Study, Lobo, Patrícia Leal Dantas
