March 23, 2025 at 10:48 am

Dentist Compared Sodas To See Which Gives You The Most Cavities, And His Conclusion Isn’t Expected

by Ben Auxier

We all want to have nicer teeth – but sometimes it can be hard to know how, especially when marketing makes confusing claims.

Dentist and TikTok user @dr.m is here to shed a little light on soda and your teeth:

“Which is more likely to cause cavities – an Olipop, Poppi, or Coke Zero? I’m a dentist so obviously we’re gonna be talking about your oral health, and just a quick reminder – cavities are caused by two things; sugar content, and acidity.”

“Coke Zero has zero grams of sugar because it is sweetened by aspartame, and we’re gonna be using these pH strips, and if it’s in this red, orange, or yellow range, it’s acidic.”

“It is between red and orange, so it’s like probably about a pH of 3.5.”

“Alright next up, Olipop Vintage Cola contains three grams of sugar, and depending on the flavor, they contain three to five grams sugar, but they’re also sweetened by stevia. Slightly better [acidity] than Coke Zero, but probably closer to like a 4 or 4.5.”

“So Poppi’s Classic Cola contains five grams of sugar, and I think most of their flavors contain five grams of sugar, and it is also sweetened by stevia. But the difference with Poppi versus Olipop is that it contains apple cider vinegar, so I wonder how much more acidic it is. Bit darker than the Olipop, so maybe closer to the Coke Zero. Still very acidic.”

“Here’s the conclusion: all of these can cause cavities. But this is what you need to remember: if the pH of whatever you’re drinking is less than 5.5, if you are drinking or sipping on it for longer than 30 minutes, it can put your teeth in a state of demineralization. So the real crime here is not the vending machine, or the unsolicited comments from Olipop, it’s actually saying that soda is healthy. How you need to treat all of these are the same; drink them as a treat – less than 30 minutes – and rinse with water afterwards.”