title: Caries reduction by milk fluoridation in Bulgaria.
abstract: The aim of the present study has been to investigate the caries-reducing effect of a community-based milk fluoridation project. In those Kindergartens where fluoridated milk had been delivered on a regular basis, the estimated consumption corresponded to a daily intake of 200 mL milk containing 1 mg F- (5 ppm F-) for periods of 180-200 days per year. A total of 204 six-year-old children, randomly selected, was examined at baseline and three and a half years after the start of the project. A statistically significant reduction in the prevalence of dental caries was obtained for those children who had received fluoridated milk on a regular basis. In six-year-old children, the reduction in the dmft figure was 40% and in the DMFT figure, 90%. Despite the deficiencies in the design of this study (dictated by local circumstances), the results confirm the findings of other studies on the caries-reducing effect of fluoridated milk. The results also confirm that the earlier in the child's life the consumption of fluoridated milk starts, the better the effect.
authors.affiliation: Dental Faculty, University of Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ivanova
authors.forename: G N
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Pakhomov
authors.forename: I J
authors.initials: IJ
authors.lastname: Moeller
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vrabcheva
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D002031:Bulgaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004245:DMF Index; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D005459:Fluorides / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005527:Food, Fortified; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008892:Milk; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D005459:Fluorides