Chewing Pomegranate Fruit as an Adjuvant to Fight Against Early Childhood Caries

Aim: Study was aimed to assess the effect of whole pomegranate fruit on oral bacterial load in children less than 6 years of age.Materials and Methods: 30 children between 4 to 6 years age were given 3 table spoons of whole pomegranate after collecting their baseline saliva sample.Children were instructed to abstain from food & liquids for 60 minutes.Post interventional saliva sample were collected after 60 minutes.Data was analysed by t-test and paired t-test at 0.05 level of significance.Results: The mean CFU/ml in the post -operative sample was significantly lower than in the pre -operative sample (p<0.05).Conclusion: The whole pomegranate fruit has significant inhibitory effects on oral bacterial load, and is a promising adjuvant in preventing ECC.