Page 12 THE BATTALION WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 1977 Can gum chewing fight cavities? United Press International CHICAGO — Dental researchers are trying to see if chewing gum, a villain in many cases of tooth decay, can turn into a cavity fighter with the help of a new sweetner. Researchers at Loyola Univer sity’s school of preventive dentistry are testing a theory that the sweetener, xylitol, actually cuts the number of decay-producing bacteria in the mouth. The research is un derwritten by William Wrigley Co., producers of Wrigley’s gum. Dr. Kirk Hoerman, a dentist who heads the school, said interest in xylitol-sweetened gum was prompted by a 1974 Finnish study which indicated that people who chewed xylitol gum four times a day had a significant reduction in cavities. Initial reports from the Loyola study, Hoerman said, “did not see any effect of xylitol that was as as tounding” as in the Finnish re search. But he said some encouragement was noted. Whatever the final outcome of the study, Hoerman said, it is important that xylitol alone not be regarded as a cure for cavities. The important thing right now is to minimize what could be a high expectation among the public, par ticularly mothers and children, that xylitol is a miracle, a cure for holes in teeth. It is not a cure for that, ” he said. Hoerman’s study includes three g r oups of dental students, who chew seven sticks of gum a day for 10 weeks. One group chews gum sweetened 100 percent with xylitol, another gum with sugar sweetening and the third given a gum base with flavoring but no sweetner. Researchers take samples of transparent film called plaque from the students teeth each week and count the number of bacteria, in cluding streptococcus mutants which are known to cause tooth de cay. “Initially it looks like the count of streptococci in plaque from xylitol chewers are less than in individuals chewing gum containing sugar,” Hoerman said. But he said it is too early to tell whether xylitol is actually reducing the streptococcus count. Xylitol is a chemical which occurs naturally in berries, some fruits, tree leaves and bark and mush rooms. It also is produced naturally in some animal tissues and in the human body. SOHY PRESENTS ■iTHE FINESTFOR THE FINE TUNED EAR » 1 SB* D0Li!r_iJ □ CZICTi M AmAdE* JCi• OFFERS GOOD AT YOUR NEW BRYAN SAFEWAY ONLY! ☆SONY 12" TRINITRON COLOR TELEVISION SET(l) ☆SAMSONITE COMPANION CASE (1) ☆TWO HOT DOG COOKERS ☆ 19" G.E. COLOR TV SET(l) ☆SET OF STAINLESS FLATWARE (1) ☆ SET OF HEARTHSIDE STONEWARE(l) Drawings to be held Saturday night, Nov. 26, 1977 at your new Bryan Safeway Store! No purchase needed to register . . Atttendance not needed to win. Register each time you shop! , FREE PRIZES, GIFTS and GIVE-AWAYS AVAILABLE AT THE NEW BRYAN SAFEWAY STORE ONLY! Copyright 1960, Safeway Stores, Inc.