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Caries Process, Prevention and Management: The Diet

Course Number: 713

References/Additional Resources

  1. National Institutes of Health. Oral Health in America: Advances and Challenges. Bethesda, MD: US Dept of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of dental and Craniofacial Research. 2021.

  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Oral Health Surveillance Report: Dental Caries, Tooth Retention, and Edentulism, United States, 2017-March 2020. US Dept of Health and Human Services; 2024. Access date: 2/27/25.

  3. Zhang JS, Chu CH, Yu, OY. Oral microbiome and dental caries development. Dent J. 2022;10:184. https://doi.org/10.3390/dj10100184.

  4. Marshall T, Touger-Decker R. Chapter 75 Oral Health and Disease. In: Tucker K (ed) Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, 12th ed; Burlington MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning LLC. November 2024.

  5. Schroth RJ, Lavelle C, Tate R, Bruce S, Billings RJ, Maffatt MEK. Prenatal vitamin D and dental caries in infants. Pediatr. 2014; 133(5): e1277-e1284.

  6. Nunn ME, Braunstein NS, Kaye EAK, Dietrich T, Garcia RI, Henshaw HM. Healthy eating indes is a predictor of early childhood caries. J Dent Res. 2009;88(4):361-366.

  7. Zhou, Y, Yang JY, Lo ECM, Lin HC. The contribution of life course determinants to early childhood caries: a 2-year cohort study. Caries Res. 2012;46(2):87-94.

  8. Clarke MP, Kenny DJ, Judd P. Malnourishment in a population of young children with sever early childhood caries. Pediatr Dent. 2006; 28(3):254-259.

  9. U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025. 9th Edition. December 2020. Accessed 2/27/25.

  10. World Health Organization. Sugars and dental caries. 2017. Accessed 2/27/25.

  11. Stephan RM, Miller BF. A quantitative method for evaluating physical and chemical agents which modify production of acids in bacterial plaques on human teeth. J Dent Res. 1943;22:45-51.

  12. Naval S, Koerber A, Salzmann L, Punwani I, Johnson BJ, Wu CD. The effects of beverages on plaque acidogenicity after a sugary challenge. J Am. Dent Assoc. 2013;144(7):815-822.

  13. Harris R. The biology of the children of Hopewood House, Bowral, N.S.W. VI. The pattern of dental caries experience. Aust Dent J. 1967 Jun;12(3):220-227.

  14. Gustafsson BE, Quensel CE, Lanke LS, et al. The Vipeholm dental caries study; the effect of different levels of carbohydrate intake on caries activity in 436 individuals observed for five years. Acta Odontol Scand. 1954 Sep;11(3-4):232-264.

  15. Moynihan PJ and Kelly SAM. Effect on caries of restricting sugars intake: systematic review to inform WHO guidelines. J Dent Res. 2014; 93(1):8-18.

  16. Marshall TA, Levy SM, Broffitt B, Warren JJ, Eichenberger-Gilmore JM, Burns TL, Stumbo PJ. Dental caries and beverage consumption in young children. Pediatr. 2003; 112:184-191.

  17. Marshall TA, Broffitt B, Eichenberger-Gilmore J, Warren JJ, Cunningham MA, Levy SM. The roles of meal, snack, and daily total food and beverage exposures on caries experience in young children. J Public Health Dent. 2005; 65(3): 166-172.

  18. Marshall TA, Curtis AM, Cavanaugh JE, Warren JJ, Levy SM. Beverage intakes and toothbrushing during childhood are associated with caries at age 17 years. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2021; 121(2):253-260.

  19. Kolker JL, Yuan Y, Burt BA, Sandretto AM, Sohn W, Lang SW, Ismail AI. Dental caries and dietary patterns in low-income African American children. Pediatr Dent. 2007; 29:457-464.

  20. Vargas CM, Dye BA, Kolasny CR, Buckman DW, McNeel TS, Tinanoff N, Marshall TA, Levy SM. Early childhood caries and intake of 100% fruit juice: data from NHANES, 1999-2004. J Am Dent Assoc. 2014;145(12):1254-1261.

  21. Palmer CA, Kent R, Loo CY, Hughes CV, Stutius E, Pradhan N, Dahlan M, Kanasi E, Vasquez SSA, Tanner ACR. Diet and caries-associated bacteria in severe early childhood caries. J Dent Res. 2010; 89(1):1224-1229.

  22. Delaney C, Warren J, Rysavy OA, Marshall T. Dietary questions in caries risk assessment and their relationship to caries. J Public Health Dent. 2024; 1-6.

  23. Marshall TA. Dietary implications for dental caries: a practical approach on dietary counseling. Dent Clin N Amer. 2019; 63:595-605.

  24. Marshall TA, Touger-Decker R. Oral health and multimorbidity: is diet the chicken or the egg? Proc Nutr Soc. 2024; 1-8.

  25. MyPlate. US Dept of Agriculture. Accessed 2/28/2024.

  26. Food security in the US. Economic Research Service. US Dept of Agriculture. Accessed 2/28/25.

  27. Radandt NE, Cobridge T, Johnson DB, Kim AS, Scott JM, Coldwell SE. Validation of a 2-item food security screening tool in a dental setting. J Dent Child, 2018; 85(3)114-119.

  28. Slotnick MJ, Leng CW. Water insecurity indicators are associated with lower diet and beverage quality in a national survey of lower-income United Staes Adults. J Nutr. 2023; 153:3308-3316.

Additional Resources


  • Marshall TA. Chairside diet assessment of caries risk. J Am Dent Assoc. 2009; 140:670-674.
  • Marshall TA. Preventing dental caries associated with sugar-sweetened beverages. J Am Dent Assoc. 2013; 144(10):1148-1152.
  • Marshall TA. Nomenclature, characteristics and dietary intakes of sugars. J Am Dent Assoc. 2015; 145(1):61-64.
  • Marshall TA. Dietary implications for dental caries: a practical approach on dietary counseling. Dent Clin N Amer. 2019; 63:595-605.