Taste perception can play a crucial role in shaping a patient’s oral health habits and response to treatment. This article explores how taste and clinical efficiency can influence acceptance of fluoride treatments.

Tastes evolve with time, but also alongside a changing oral health status. Recognising that the dentition is a prominent structure in the oral cavity, both clinicians and patients should understand how poor oral health may affect taste, and vice versa.

It can also impact the enjoyment of dental appointments and treatments, and clinicians should know how they can make a difference. It makes sense to briefly consider how our own tastes can influence diet, and in turn, oral health.

A 2022 review suggested that patients with little perception of bitter tastes are at a heightened risk of caries development (Alkuhl and colleagues, 2022).

In addition, those with little perception of bitter tastes had a preference for sweet foods, leading to a high sugar intake.

On the other hand, patients who could taste bitterness were more sensitive to sweetness and tended to dislike sweet food. They may go on to avoid such products and could have an improved oral health status as a result.

Taste and dental treatment

Studies have shown that patients can experience bitter and sweet flavours at a greater intensity when they engage in oral hygiene habits more frequently, suggesting that regular hygiene habits increase taste perception.

However, the same individuals are shown to dislike bitter tastes more than those who brush their teeth and interdentally floss less often.

An increased perception of bitter tastes could fuel improved oral hygiene habits, as bacteria in the oral cavity produce bitter metabolites, and any disdain for the taste could prompt intervention to allay the flavour.

Treatments provided in practice can also be problematic if they do not taste pleasant. Children especially can gag when treated with strongly flavoured products, such as some flavours of prophylaxis paste or fluoride solutions.

If patients have a strong aversion to these based on the taste experienced in a previous treatment, they may be unwilling to undergo that aspect of care in future; their oral health could suffer as a result.

Why Clinpro Clear?

How do you use Clinpro Clear?

For best results, teeth should be clean and free of excess saliva prior to application.

Press the single-use L-Pop package to squeeze the product out of the reservoir and into the attached dispensing well.

Next, remove the applicator brush from the packaging by gently pulling the handle.

Using the applicator brush, apply the product to the teeth, reloading the brush as needed.

It is not necessary to use all the product provided – just use enough product to form a coating on the desired treatment area.

After application, you may see a clear coating on the teeth. It is also important that the patient does not rinse.

The fluoride coating will gradually wear away. To achieve the maximum benefit, instruct the patient to avoid food, beverages and oral rinses for at least 15 minutes after application.

Improved taste

Mint

Provides a pleasant mint taste experience.

Watermelon

Provides a pleasant watermelon taste experience.

Flavourless

Ideal for patients who prefer or need a product without any added flavour.

Improve fluoride treatment acceptance by offering solutions with a pleasant flavour and comfortable mouthfeel, such as the 3M Clinpro Clear Fluoride Treatment from Solventum, formerly 3M Health Care.

Designed with three flavour choices – mint, watermelon, and flavourless – clinicians can choose a solution that their patient will prefer for each unique appointment. A smooth mouthfeel also improves comfort during treatments, for an improved patient experience.

One of the biggest challenges that we have in a dental practice is a child’s acceptance of a flavour when placing the fluoride varnish. This also helps ease the parents’ minds as well. The flavourless option is particularly well accepted by children who do not like strong flavours or tastes.

Fluoride treatment simplified

Single dose packaging

Efficiency is a key topic in a busy practice. Clinpro Clear has multiple answers to that challenge.
One is single-dose packaging – it matters to have not only efficiency, but infection prevention measures are a key component of what we do.
The product makes appointments simple and effective for clinicians and patients alike.

Fast and easy application

Usually, fluoride treatment is a two-hour process, involving a very sticky substance which tastes unpleasant, and the patient can’t eat anything for a while afterwards.
In addition, the dentist might not even like providing it because it takes so much chair time.
But with Clinpro Clear, combining a fast and easy application with effective fluoride uptake, and requiring just 15 minutes’ contact time, appointments are streamlined to fit into a patient’s day and allow clinicians to support more individuals.

Great control

A unique press-and-go L-Pop single-dose delivery system makes the formula fast and easy to apply.
It also gives great control when applying the product, as clinicians swipe the water-based formula onto the teeth smoothly.
The package can be bent and dispensed onto a gloved hand as an alternative, and equally simple, method of use.