Introduction:Larger health warning labels on cigarette packages were introduced in India in 2016 to more clearly inform consumers about the health risks associated with tobacco use. The aim of this study was to know the adolescent's perception on the introduction of new cigarette packaging and plain packaging of cigarette packs.Methodology:A qualitative study was carried out among adolescents aged 16–19 years. Eighteen participants were selected using purposive sampling technique. Three focus group discussions with thefirst group consisting of 6 smokers and the second and third groups consisted of 6 quit smokers and 6 nonsmokers were conducted. The data were later transcribed and analyzed using grounded theory approach.Results:Nearly all participants were aware of tobacco products, brand names, colors, and pictorial warnings on tobacco products. While the nonsmokers perceived fear was greater regarding warning and the pictorial messages, the current smoker's perceptions were unaffected by fear appeals. Almost all participants reported that new cigarette warning labels were more visible, informative, and scarier than the older ones.Conclusion:Positive impact of warning labels was seen among nonsmokers and few quit smokers whereas the current smoker's perceptions were unaffected.

Various studies have demonstrated that acidic and low pH (less or equal to 5.5) mouthwashes can cause dental demineralization, erosion and significant loss of enamel within the first few minutes of contact with such acidic solution. 1 The erosive potential depends on low pH and ABSTRACT Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate in vitro the endogenous pH, titratable acidity of mouthwashes available in the Indian market. Methods: The study sample was composed of 11 commercial brands of mouthwashes based on different active ingredients. The experiments were performed in triplicate. The endogenous pH was evaluated by using a digital pH meter; titratable acidity was evaluated by the addition of 0.1N NaOH increments to the mouthwashes. Results: pH values ranged from 4.01(CODE K mouth wash containing Terminalia chebula) to 6.58 (CODE E mouthwash containing Diclofenac), and total of six mouthwashes had pH less than the critical value of 5.5, thus classified as potentially erosive. Titratable acidity values ranged from 0.2 (CODE H-Chlorhexidine Gluconate) to 1.2 (CODE I-Thymol, Eucalyptol). Conclusions: Some of the mouthwashes evaluated in this study presented low endogenous pH, even below the critical value for enamel dissolution (pH<5.5), high titratable acidity which may be potentially erosive to the dental tissues if not properly used.

<p class="abstract"><strong>Background:</strong> Xylitol, a naturally occurring sugar alcohol which cannot be fermented by oral microorganisms has been shown to reduce <em>Streptococcus</em> <em>mutans</em> levels in plaque and saliva and to markedly reduce tooth decay. Studies have proved that combination of xylitol and sorbitol added in chewing gum is more effective in reducing tooth decay compared to xylitol alone. Purpose<strong> </strong>of this double blinded, parallel, randomized trial was to compare the relative effect of sorbitol and combination of xylitol and sorbitol containing dentifrices on salivary <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> and <em>Lactobacillus</em> in a group of high school children.</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Methods:</strong> Sixty school children with age group of 14-15 years were randomly allocated into 2 study groups (S-sorbitol containing dentifrice and X+S- Xylitol and Sorbitol containing dentifrice), with 32 participants in each group. Subjects were asked to use the experimental dentifrices twice daily for 3 months period. Resting whole saliva was collected at baseline, at the end of 1 month, 2 months and 3 months interval after the use of assigned dentifrice. Saliva samples were used for microbial analysis. <em>Streptococcus mutans </em>was cultured on Mitis salivarius bacitracin agar and <em>Lactobacilli</em> on Rogosa SL agars. Results were expressed in frequencies. Nonparametric tests namely Wilcoxons-signed rank test and Mann Whitney U test were used for testing the statistical significance. The level of significance was set at p=0.05.</p><p class="abstract"><strong>Results:</strong> There was no significant difference in salivary <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> count amongst the two groups at baseline (p=0.271). There was no significant difference in counts of <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> and lactobacilli among the subjects in the sorbitol containing dentifrices (S) group at different time intervals of the study whereas there was significant reduction in counts of <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> and <em>Lactobacillus</em> count among the subjects in the xylitol and sorbitol (X+S) containing dentifrices at all the time interval. At the end of 3^rd month interval there was significantly low <em>Streptococcous mutans </em>and lactobacilli count for X+S group compared to S group with p&lt;0.001 and p=0.02 respectively.  </p><p><strong>Conclusions:</strong> The use of dentifrices containing combination of xylitol and sorbitol, twice daily showed significant antimicrobial properties against salivary <em>Streptococcus mutans</em> and <em>lactobacillus</em> by the end of 3 month compared to sorbitol containing dentifrice.</p>