How Clean Is Your Mouth?
By Gen L.
The purpose of this experiment was to see which mouthwash, Listerine, Scope, or the CVS Brand best kills the bacteria of the mouth. In order to perform this experiment sterile disks were soaked in mouthwashes. These disks were then placed on petri dishes with agar, along with a bacteria sample. The petri dishes were then left overnight in an incubator. When the dishes were retrieved, the zone of inhibition was measured, determining the amount of bacteria killed by each substance.
After completing this experiment, it was found that Listerine killed the most bacteria. Listerine's average zone of inhibition was 2.6mm. Scope's average zone of inhibition was 1.9mm, and CVS Brand's average zone of inhibition was 2.4mm. The control, distilled water had an average zone of inhibition of .8mm.