Measuring Mouthwash

Effectiveness
Community Succession
Domonique Payan

Payan1

Introduction:
The purpose of this experiment was to measure the effectiveness in different brand names of
mouthwash and monitor the growth of bacteria. The mouthwash brands that were used in my
groups experiment were Listerine and Up & Up. We will be using water as well, as a control
reference. As part of this experiment one of our group members will need to contribute their
salvia which would then be applied onto agar plates (circular trays) along with the two brand
name mouthwashes we had chosen. Then the samples will be sealed tight and taped and stored
for a week to allow the growth of bacteria.

Hypothesis:
The Listerine mouthwash will have more of an effectiveness (against bacteria) than the Up & Up
mouthwash.

Materials and Methods:

3 Sterile Nutrient Agar Plates

Mouthwash (Listerine Zero, Up & Up)
D.I. Water
Spot Plates for H2O & Mouthwash
Sterilized Paper Discs
Sterilized Cotton Swabs
Alcohol Swabs
Sterilized Forceps
24 Small Circular Cloth Disks

To begin this experiment we gathered the sterile cotton swabs, collect the saliva in ones mouth,
in this case our partner Hanna volunteered, and then we applied the contents collected from her
mouth onto the nutrient agar plates (circular trays); making sure to apply the saliva thoroughly
and generously onto the agar plates. This step was repeated three times to ensure even
distribution on the agar plates. The lid for the agar plate was closed immediately after applying
the saliva. These steps were then repeated for the other two agar plates.
Once the above steps were completed we sterilize the spot plates with the alcohol swabs and
poured the selected mouthwashes into them which in this case as stated above were: Listerine
Zero, Up & Up, and D.I Water for our control reference. We then soaked 24 circular cloth disks,
8 in Listerine Zero, 8 in Up & UP and 8 in D.I water, and applied them evenly throughout their
own agar plate. Not to mention closing the lids immediately after all the cloth disks were applied
on the plates.

Payan2

Upon completion, the plates were tightly sealed by tape and then store in a cupboard to allow
bacteria to grow. They were stored for a week.
Once a week had past, our group measured and examined the growth/diameter of the bacteriafree zones that were visible around the cloth disks. We then recorded our observations and data
on a chart and deposed any materials that were on the agar plates into a biohazard trashcan.

Results:
Treatment
H2O
Listerine
Zero
Up & Up

1
0
2.5cm

2
0
2.3cm

3
0
2.5cm

4
0
3.0cm

5
0
2.8cm

6
0
2.6cm

7
0
2.2cm

8
0
2.5cm

Listerine Zero:

Up & Up:

Variance = .0657cm

Variance = 0

Standard Deviation = .2563cm

Standard Deviation = 0

Range = 2.29cm 2.81cm

Range = 0

Discussions & Conclusion:

Upon our observations I do not think our group is going to use Up & Up as a primary
mouthwash. Listerine Zero on the other hand seemed to have done a good job against the growth
of bacteria. This experiment completely changed my perspective on how much I am paying for
the effectiveness of mouthwash. Also due to the graphs skewed data, it seems as though our
group has made an error, perhaps of not soaking the cloth disks correctly.
Looking at the ingredients, Listerine Zero appeared to have no alcohol in it while Up & Up had
about 21.6% alcohol. This might have an effect on the results of our experiment. In comparing
both mouthwash ingredients, we noticed that Listerine Zero had an extra fighting bacteria
ingredient which was identified to be propylene glycol it also had benzoic acid. I am sure having
the slightest difference in ingredients will have some sort of impact on the effectiveness against
bacteria and for sure as we see in our results. Therefore we conclude that Listerine Zero has the
effective ingredients in bacteria prevention.
Group Partners: Hanna El-Haddad, Justin Kuk, Dimah Zayed