Digestion and Metabolism of Carbohydrates 85topical application via toothpastes and mouth rinses
prevents dental caries. Too much fl uoride in drinking
water can cause fl uorosis, which damages the skeleton
and teeth. The optimum concentration of fl uoride
in temperate areas of the world is 1 mg/l, falling to
0.6 mg/l in tropical climates where fl uid intake is
likely to be greater.
5.6 Perspectives on the future
The carbohydrate structure and amounts in many
foods and ingredients can be manipulated to achieve
specifi c physicochemical properties of benefi t for
food structure and organoleptic effects and to produce
a diverse range of physiological effects. It can be
expected that many functional foods of the future will
contain such specially selected or modifi ed carbohy-
drates, but the metabolic and health consequences of
these carbohydrates should be examined in more
detail before health claims can be justifi ed.
Future research on carbohydrate nutrition should
also focus on the physiological and biochemical (met-
abolic) effects of the SCFAs produced from nonglyce-
mic carbohydrates.
To provide a sound evidence base for recommen-
dations for intakes of specifi c carbohydrates, the
relationships between intakes of different types and
quantities of carbohydrate with health and disease,
for example during transition of traditional people
and consequent lowering of intakes, should be a fruit-
ful area for research.
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