CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA. It has long been know that magnetized water can reduce the build-up of scale in boilers and other industrial equipment. It is believed that magnetization reduces the scale formation by preventing naturally- occurring mineral deposits in the water from changing from a liquid to a solid state. A form of scale can also form on teeth. Calculus is mineralized plaque that forms on teeth through the bathing of plaque in saliva containing calcium and phosphate ions. Now researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina report that irrigating teeth with a magnetized oral irrigator can markedly reduce calculus formation. Their double-blind, two-period crossover clinical trial involved 29 patients who were known to have a strong tendency to form calculus particularly on the back of the lower six front teeth. The participants had their teeth thoroughly cleaned and after a two-week washout period were assigned to irrigate their teeth twice a day with a Hydro-Floss oral irrigator. Half of the patients used an irrigator with a magnet, the other half used one in which the magnet had been removed. After a three-month period the amount of calculus on the lower six front teeth was measured and the teeth were thoroughly cleaned again. The experiment was then repeated with the group which had used magnetized water using unmagnetized water and vice versa. A statistical evaluation of the results obtained at the end of the first period showed that the patients who had used the magnetized water had 64 per cent less calculus than the patients using the ordinary water. Overall gum health was also improved among the patients using magnetized water, but the difference was not statistically significant. The researchers conclude that using a magnetized water irrigator can help prevent the formation of calculus. NOTE: This study was funded by HydroFloss Inc., the manufacturer of the irrigator.
Johnson, Karen E., et al. The effectiveness of a magnetized water oral irrigator (Hydro Floss) on plaque, calculus and gingival health. Journal of Clinical Periodontology, Vol. 25, 1998, pp. 316-21