Singer says one of the best opportunities to curb the problem is targeting programs like SNAP, which allows recipients to buy soda. Some 67 percent of West Virginians age 65 or older have lost six or more teeth owing to tooth decay or gum disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's according to calculations by Singer, who is working with Harris. While Harris says that there aren't a lot of comprehensive surveys of dental health in Appalachia, signs of a rampant problem are unmistakable: Some 26 percent of preschoolers in the region have tooth decay, and 15 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds have had a tooth extracted because of decay or erosion. "What Mountain Dew has going for it is that it's high in caffeine and high in sugar," Harris says, adding, "Students tell us it tastes best, and it's a habit." Mountain Dew was invented in Tennessee, before PepsiCo bought the brand. Singer adds, "Here in West Virginia, you see people carrying around bottles of Mountain Dew all the time - even at a public health conference." She's received a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to study the problem.Īnd there's another reason why soda mouth is so pervasive in Appalachia, Harris says: the region's distinct culture of sipping soda constantly throughout the day. Many people don't trust the well water in their homes because of pollution concerns and probably drink more soda because of it, she says. Harris says that dental problems are especially bad because dental care is harder to get in Appalachia, which includes many of the poorest and most remote communities in the country. "It makes no sense to be paying for these things twice." "We are using taxpayer dollars to buy soda for the SNAP program, and we are using taxpayer dollars to rip teeth out of people's heads who can't afford dental care and are on Medicaid," says Dana Singer, a research analyst at the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department in Parkersburg, W.Va., who wants to see stricter regulations on sales of all sugary beverages in the region. They want to tackle the problem with policies, including restricting soda purchases with food stamps (now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and currently under debate in Congress). Public health advocates say soft drinks are driving the region's alarmingly high incidence of eroded brown teeth - a phenomenon dubbed "Mountain Dew mouth," after the region's favorite drink. By now, we've all heard of the health risks posed by drinking too much soda.īut over in Appalachia, the region that stretches roughly from southern New York state to Alabama, the fight against soda is targeting an altogether different concern: rotted teeth. "Here in West Virginia, you see people carrying around bottles of Mountain Dew all the time - even at a public health conference," says public health researcher Dana Singer. Appalachia has a distinct culture of sipping soda constantly throughout the day.
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