Effect of Chewing Pineapple and Watermelon on Students’ Plaque
Keywords:
Pineapple, Plaque, WatermelonAbstract
Poor dental hygiene in adolescents leads to plaque buildup. One way to maintain dental and oral hygiene is through dietary habits, including fruit consumption. Juicy fruits, such as pineapple and watermelon, have the potential to remove plaque. However, research comparing pineapple and watermelon on dental hygiene has not been widely conducted, especially among high school-aged adolescents. The following study aims to determine the effectiveness of chewing pineapple (Ananas comosus) and watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) on plaque index. The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental design with a two-group pre- and post-test design. A total of 32 students from SMA Yayasan Pengembangan Pendidikan Buntong Tateli participated, drawn by purposive sampling. The pineapple and watermelon weighed 125 grams, divided into four small pieces. Each piece was instructed to chew eight times on one side of the jaw as cleaning technique. The plaque index category was determined based on the difference in plaque scores before and after consuming pineapple or watermelon. This intervention was conducted on one day. The results showed an average plaque index for the pineapple pre-test of 3.95±0.69 and a post-test of 2.12±0.86. Thus, the plaque index decreased by 1.83±0.74. The average plaque index before chewing watermelon was 3.82±1.03 , and after 2.21±0.95. The plaque index decreased by 1.61±0.80. The Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test statistical analysis yielded p = 0.01 ? ? = 0.05. The conclusion is that chewing both pineapple and watermelon can reduce plaque levels. However, the reduction in plaque levels is slightly greater with pineapple.Downloads
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