Dental caries

What are dental caries?

Dental caries (tooth decay) are the major cause of toothache, with symptoms including infection, bad breath, tooth loss and inflammation. Currently, one in four Australian adults have untreated caries. While untreated caries can cause pain and infection, it can be reversed in the early stages.

What is the Oral Health CRC doing?

The Oral Health CRC continues to build on the success of Recaldent™ technology, which delivers calcium and phosphate ions into the tooth enamel, repairing and reversing early stages of dental caries (tooth decay). Products containing Recaldent™ are available from your dentist, including Tooth Mousse and Tooth Mousse Plus.

Oral Health CRC researchers are also investigating ways of producing new over-the-counter dental healthcare products and commercially available functional foods and beverages, with improved abilities to prevent dental caries. 

For more information, please visit the Research section of this website. For updates, please subscribe to our mailing list or use the Contact Us section of this website.

Where can I get more information?

For more information on dental caries including prevention and treatment advice, please visit:

• Department of Health Services Victoria, http://www.dhsv.org.au/dental-advice/general-dental-advice/
• Australian Dental Association, http://www.ada.org.au/faqs/faqsCategory,category,Dental_Caries.aspx
• Victorian Government's Better Health Channel, http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au