During the last 25 years Kim McFarland, D.D.S., associate professor in the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry in Lincoln, has seen an increase in the number of dental patients with erosion of the tooth enamel.

According to the new research root beer could be the safest soft drink for your teeth, however, may other popular diet and sugared sodas are nearly as corrosive to dental enamel as battery acid.

Prolonged exposure to soft drinks can lead to significant enamel loss, even though many people consider soft drinks to be harmless or just worry about their sugar content and the potential for putting on pounds, the study says.