effect of xylitol and casein phosphate amorphous calcium phosphate gums on saliva: a randomized clinical trial

Objective: this study aimed to investigate the effects of two types of gum, containing xylitol or casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (cpp-acp), on saliva properties.methods: in this single-blind clinical trial, 60 dental students were randomly divided into three groups (n=20). each group was instructed to chew one of the following substances: paraffin (control), xylitol gum, or cpp-acp gum. saliva samples were collected before and five minutes after chewing. saliva volume was measured using a pipette, and saliva ph was evaluated with a digital ph meter. the calcium concentration was determined using the photometric method, while phosphorus concentration was measured via spectrophotometry. statistical analysis was performed using the chi-square test, anova, tukey hsd post hoc test, and paired t-test (α = 0.05).results: chewing all three substances significantly increased saliva volume and ph while reducing phosphorus ion concentration (p < 0.05). the calcium ion level increased significantly after five minutes of chewing the cpp-acp gum (p = 0.002). after the intervention, between-group comparisons revealed no significant difference in saliva volume and ph (p > 0.05). however, the calcium level in the cpp-acp group was significantly higher than the control group (p = 0.01). additionally, the phosphorus ion level was significantly lower in the xylitol gum group than in the control and the cpp-acp groups (p < 0.05).conclusions: chewing cpp-acp gum may promote oral health more effectively than xylitol gum by increasing salivary calcium levels and less affecting phosphorus levels.