The Effect of Consuming Robusta Coffee (Coffea Canephora) on Salivary pH Based on Gender

Backgrounds: The degree of acidity (pH) of saliva plays an important role in dental caries, periodontal disease, and various other oral diseases. A low degree of accidity (4.5- 5.5) will supports acidogenic bacteria such as Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus to grow. Diet patterns influence the degree of acidity (pH) of saliva. Coffee is a familiar drink to all ages and genders. The main content of robusta coffee are caffeine, carbohydrates, protein, organic acids, trigonelline and chlorogenic acid can cause a decrease in the acidity (pH) levels of men's and women's saliva. Objectives: Provide information regarding the effect of consuming robusta coffee on salivary pH based on gender. Methods: This study used 32 samples divided into 2 groups, which are male and female groups aged 20-24 years with an experimental research type and pretest-posttest group design. The normality test used Shapiro- Wilk, and statistical tests used the Paired T-Test and Independent T-Test. Results: Based on the results of the statistical tests showed a decrease in salivary pH in each group (P = 0.01 for the male group and P = 0.029 for the female group) after consuming robusta coffee. However, there was no significant difference in effect between the two groups (P = 0.217) after consuming robusta coffee. Conclusion: Consuming robusta coffee can decrease men’s and women’s salivary pH, but there is no significant difference in effect between the two groups. The decrease in men’s salivary pH has a greater value compared to women’s salivary pH.