This is an experiment that we recently did in health, regarding teeth and the importance of brushing them consistently. The experiment is a simple one, all you will need is 1 fresh egg (do not crack or break it, it needs to be whole), a small container with a lid and vinegar (enough to cover the egg). The egg represents your teeth and the vinegar represents the acids that food create in your mouth. It shows what the acid does to the enamel on your teeth overtime if you didn't brush regularly (it eats away at the enamel, which is why you get cavities). This experiment will take 96 (4 days) hours to conduct. I had my son look at it everyday, so he could notices the small changes that were going on with the egg. Place your fresh egg in the small container and pour the vinegar over the egg. I found that over the time, the gases that are building up seemed to push the lid off the container if I completely sealed it, so just place the lid loosely over the container (it helps to cut down on the smell). After 4 days, you can throw this experiment away, but I think that what really made the point to my son was when he gently poked the egg with this finger and it broke the egg so easily. He was able to see that only the thin lining of the shell was left, all the actual shell was gone.
Please note: that our enamel on our teeth is made of calcium and that the shell on the egg is made of similar material. When we eat food, the saliva in our mouth helps to break down the food. But it can also break down the enamel on our teeth. Below are pictures from our experiment over the 96 hours.
24 hours after we placed the egg in the vinegar
48 hours after we placed the egg in the vinegar
72 Hours after we placed the egg in the vinegar
96 Hours after we placed the eggin the vinegar (last day of the experiment)
After lil' man gently poked the egg with his finger
What is left of the shell after 96 hours in vinegar
