; The Science | Smilesaver
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The
PROBLEM

Why are bacteria on

removable oral devices undesirable?

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Bacteria stick to removable oral devices, such as clear aligners and dentures, where they multiply rapidly to form biofilms on their surfaces because they remain in the mouth for most of the day. These biofilms comprise a wide range of bacterial species, including potentially harmful bacteria, such as Streptococcus mutans, which is the major cause of cavities, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum, which are two of the culprits in gum disease, and other detrimental microorganisms, such as Candida albicans, which can cause stomatitis and bad breath in denture wearers.


Biofilms also build up on oral devices, such as sports mouth guards, which are worn for much shorter periods of time. These biofilms comprise a combination of oral species which attach during usage in mouth and “environmental” species derived from dirty mouth guard storage containers, sports bags and other items with which they come in contact.


If biofilms continue to build up on these oral devices because they are not regularly cleaned, they can create undesirable issues for their users, including unsightly device aesthetics, especially yellowing and opacity, unpleasant taste and embarrassing breath odor. In addition, they may put users at increased risk of development of bacteria-related conditions in the mouth and possibly elsewhere in the body. Thus, the buildup of bacterial biofilm on removable oral devices can negatively impact their users’ compliance to their use.

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Formulation
EFFICACY

Smilesaver® helps

eliminate harmful bacteria!

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Soluria® has conducted several laboratory tests to assess how effective Smilesaver® is in eliminating potentially harmful bacteria. Soluria® has tested a range of oral bacteria, such as Streptococcus mutans, which is the major cause of cavities, Porphyromonas gingivalis and Fusobacterium nucleatum, which are two of the culprits in gum disease, and Candida albicans, which can cause stomatitis and bad breath in denture wearers.

 

Soluria® has also tested a range of non-oral bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, which can cause gut problems, especially food poisoning, Staphylococcus aureus, which can cause skin problems, especially wound infections, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can cause multiple infections throughout the body.


Thanks to its unique combination of ingredients, especially to its primary functional ingredient, lauroyl arginine ethyl ester (LAE) - a surfactant with a strong history of safe and effective use in food and personal care products - Smilesaver® was found to eliminate 99.9% or more bacteria in 60-seconds or less in each of the four laboratory tests conducted. This level of effectiveness is unsurpassed by any other oral device cleanser, such as denture tablets, cleaning crystals, and spray foams, and its “on-the-go” convenience makes it ideal for safe and effective use anytime, anywhere!

Breaking our own speed record.

​

Soluria’s first laboratory tests showed that Smilesaver® eliminated 99.9% or more bacteria in 60 seconds. Exciting results, for sure, but the best was yet to come!

 

In Soluria’s most recent test, Smilesaver® broke its own speed record - demonstrating 99.9% elimination of both potentially harmful oral and non-oral bacteria in just 30 seconds, which is great news for all device users! Moreover, Smilesaver® was shown to eliminate 99.9% of Candida albicans in 60 seconds which is especially good for denture wearers!

An industrial container with Smilesaver in it

Clean
INGREDIENTS

Health-Consciousness,

to the MAX!

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Smilesaver® is a proprietary, safe and effective, on-the-go spray product for cleansing and freshening removable oral devices, such as clear aligners, retainers, night guards and dentures. It is so easy to use, it can be used anytime, anywhere. Just spray the device inside and out and wait 30 seconds before reinserting it into the mouth, without the need for rinsing. Smilesaver® quickly and easily reduces bad taste and helps eliminate bad breath, helping device users to better control their device usage and stay healthy.


Smilesaver® contains a combination of GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) ingredients. The primary functional ingredient is a surfactant, lauroyl arginine ethyl ester (LAE), which has a strong history of safe and effective use in food and personal care products. Smilesaver® also contains several natural ingredients, including xylitol, a non-cariogenic sweetener and a combination of proprietary ingredients, all of which are GRAS, which together ensure that the flavor of the product is first class.

A love letter to Xylitol.

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Xylitol is a sugar-free sweetener that looks and tastes like sugar but has 40% fewer calories. It is found in small amounts in many fruits and vegetables and is, therefore, considered natural. It is used in sugar-free chewing gums, candies, mints, diabetes-friendly foods, and oral-care products.


Excessive sugar intake can cause high blood sugar and insulin levels. It can also lead to insulin resistance and multiple metabolic problems. In contrast, xylitol has negligible effects on blood sugar and insulin. Xylitol’s glycemic index (GI) — a measure of how quickly a food or ingredient raises blood sugar — is only 7, whereas regular sugar’s is 60–70. For this reason, the well-known harmful effects of sugar do not apply to xylitol.

A laboratory beaker with Smilesaver solution in it

Flavor
SCIENCE

A refreshing taste

developed with precision.

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The safe, effective, and health-conscious ingredients in Smilesaver® that eliminate 99.9% of bacteria from removable dental appliances did not mean that the formulation tasted good...in fact, it didn't!

 

So our technical team at Soluria® went to work in the laboratory with a major flavor house and developed our refreshing, great tasting spearmint flavor.

 

We worked on other flavors as well, but 80% of those who evaluated the Smilesaver® product just loved our spearmint taste. So, voila! Stay tuned for new flavors in the next round of our developments.

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The
HISTORY

From research to start-up.

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Scientific research conducted by Dr Thomas Glass and his collaborators was highly influential in the development of Smilesaver® Cleansing and Freshening Spray. Dr Glass (now deceased) was Adjunct Professor of Microbiology at Oklahoma State University. For much of his career in dental medicine, Dr. Glass was interested in bacterial contamination of oral devices and the potential impact of device contamination on oral health and health conditions remote from the oral cavity. One of Dr. Glass’s scientific publications triggered the interest of Soluria’s CEO, Dennis Hanlon, and was particularly influential on Soluria’s development of Smilesaver®. This paper focused on the microbiota on sports mouthguards.


Dr. Glass firmly believed that sports mouthguards could produce oral mucosal injuries and that these injuries may be associated with other systemic conditions through contamination of the mouthguards by a range of microorganisms. The study involved sixty-two division I football players who used their mouthguards for varying lengths of time before surrendering them for microbial analysis of various bacteria, yeasts, and fungi. The results of this study revealed almost 500 different species of microorganisms, some of which had the potential to cause oral and systemic disease, indicating that substantial contamination of sports mouthguards occurs during storage and use. Further, it was shown that soaking the mouthguards in an antimicrobial solution substantially reduced the numbers of microorganisms suggesting that they should be sanitized daily.

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