The purpose of the present study was to investigate the erosive potential of various oral care products and to compare the results with those of various foodstuffs and beverages. Furthermore, the chosen method of surface hardness measurements was compared with scanning electron microscopy. Seven oral care products (toothpastes and mouth rinses), three foodstuffs and one beverage (as positive control) were tested for their erosive potential. After initial hardness testing 110 enamel specimens were distributed into 11 groups of 10 specimens each in such a way as to have a homogenous hardness distribution per group. The erosive potential of the products was tested by immersing the enamel specimens into solutions of the various products for 10 and 20 minutes. After the experimental period Knoop hardness was measured on the enamel specimens and the differences between before and after were calculated. The micromorphology of native enamel surfaces before and after immersion was determined by SEM on further enamel specimens treated identically for 20 minutes. Apple puree and orange juice produced the most marked losses of hardness after 10 and 20 minutes, respectively. Among the dental hygiene products only the fluoride-free Weleda toothpaste produced a significant reduction of hardness after 10 as well as after 20 minutes. With the exception of Elmex-Gel, all tested dental hygiene products led to a significant (p<0.05) increase of enamel hardness. The results of the hardness measurements corresponded with the micromorphological findings. It may, therefore, be concluded that the tested fluoride-containing oral care products do not exhibit any erosive potential which could be measured with the methodology used in this investigation.