A review earlier this week in the Australian Dental Journal by a group of “dental experts” claimed that mouthwash containing alcohol has been linked to increased oral cancer risk. Certainly this comes as a shock to most of us who are routinely told that mouthwash is a great supplement to toothbrushing for the removal of plaque and warding off gingivitis.

The claim

The review author, Michael McCullough,Associate Professor in Oral medicine at Melbourne University, found that there is “sufficient evidence” that use of alcohol-containing mouthwashes can increase a person’s risk for oral cancer. The alcohol component seems to be the key contributor to the increase in risk here. McCullough claims that the alcohol allows cancer-causing compounds(carcinogens) to attack the lining of the mouth more easily than mouthwash not containing alcohol.

McCullough’s Recommendations

McCullough recommends that mouthwashes containing alcohol be made available by prescription only, and prescribed only for limited use. He also called for the American Dental Association to reconsider giving its seal of approval to such products, and that warning labels be included on their packaging. Finally, McCullough proposed that oral cancer screenings become a routine part of any dental checkup.

I’m not convinced

Yet. There’s simply not enough evidence at this point to definitively link mouthwashes containing alcohol to oral cancer. What McCollough’s review failed to do is quantify the risk. Just how high or low is it? Furthermore, a number of studies within the last 10 years have failed to prove a solid link between alcohol-containing mouthwashes and oral cancer. Professor Laurence Walsh, head of the School of Dentistry at the University of Queensland, responding to McCullough’s claims said,

“A wide range of critical and systematic reviews over many years have failed to show any statistically significant association between mouthwash use and oral cancer.”

So, don’t give up using your alcohol-containing mouthwashes just yet. I’m still convinced that they provide a valuable role in your mouth’s defense against gum inflammation and plaque. There’s simply not enough evidence to suggest otherwise at this point. As always, I’ll be following this story and update you as necessary.

Your thoughts

Will you give up using alcohol-containing mouthwash?

Sources: medguru, abc.net.au

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