ADA ‘generally supports’ Dietary Guidelines science report

Association applauds recognition of ‘bi-directional’ oral health link

The ADA commended a scientific report that will be used to update federal dietary guidelines, but also urged that future reports address oral diseases more rigorously.
 
Introduced in 1980, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is a compendium of recommendations about what and how much to eat and drink to meet nutrient needs, prevent disease, and promote health. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services jointly update the Dietary Guidelines every five years, based on a scientific report and recommendations of a panel of experts, known as the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.

“The ADA generally supports the findings and recommendations of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, including the brief mention the bi-directional relationship between diet and oral health,” ADA President Brett Kessler, D.D.S., wrote in a Feb. 10 letter to the Department of Health and Human Services. “We are especially pleased with the Scientific Report’s acknowledgement that lowering sugar and acid exposures and drinking fluoridated water are safe and proven strategies to maintain good oral health.” 

The 2025 Committee stated the body of literature for oral diseases, specific nutrient recommendations, eating disorders, and five other topics had not grown enough from the 2020 Scientific Report to warrant formal systematic reviews. The implication is that the recommendations from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025 would remain unchanged. 

The ADA also lauded the panel for identifying sugar as a dietary component that presents a substantial public health concern, based on consumption patterns.

“From a dental perspective, no amount of sugar can be consumed without increasing the risk for tooth decay,” the ADA wrote. “Even milk has a measurable amount of sugar.”

The ADA went on to urge the Department of Health and Human Services to retain the recommendation to limit added sugar consumption to less than 10% of daily caloric intake and refine the body of literature examining the direct causal relationship between sugar consumption and oral diseases. 

“Again, the ADA generally supports the findings and recommendations of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, including some mention the bi-directional relationship between diet and oral health,” the letter concluded. “It reinforces what the public health community has known for years: Oral health is an inextricable part of overall health and well-being.”