In a recent science lesson in Y3, we set up a comparative and fair test to answer the following question.
Which drinks have the worst effect on our teeth?
We used the following drinks in our experiment.
Coke, Diet Coke, orange juice and water
We conducted an observation over time to see the effects of these drinks on our teeth.
Don’t worry… we didn’t hold orange juice in our mouths for a week!
We used eggs instead! An egg shell contains calcium – the same mineral that is found in our enamel (the protective layer on our teeth).
We placed the eggs (which were the same type and size) into beakers and poured over 200ml of each liquid and placed them to one side.
We then made predictions about which drink we thought would have the worst effect.
“I think the drink that will have the worst effect will be the Coke because it contains lots of sugar!” said Tommy.
After leaving our eggs for 6 days, we removed them from their liquid and observed the changes.
See for yourself below:
orange juice
Coke
Diet Coke with toothpaste
Diet Coke
water
The effects of these drinks are clear to see!
Now, obviously, you wouldn’t keep a drink like orange juice in your mouth for a whole week.
What we can take away from this learning is that if you do decide to have a drink like Coke or orange juice every once in a while, then it seems like a good idea to wash it down with some water after!
We can also see that the toothpaste has protected the egg shell from as much staining than without it!
See what your child can remember about our learning!