Study: Tea Good For Teeth
Fighting Cavities With A 'Cuppa'
The British aren't exactly world renowned for their dentists, but who needs one when you can simply sip a 'cuppa'?
A University of Illinois study has found that drinking black tea can help to fight cavities.
The research is part of a collaborative study done in conjunction with the College of Dentistry at the University of Iowa and the Institute of Odontology at Goeteborg University in Sweden.
Earlier studies in Japan had shown that there are cavity-fighting benefits in green tea but the study decided to focus on black tea because it is more popular in Western culture.
The study found that a specific element of black tea, called polyphenols, killed or suppressed cavity-causing bacteria from either growing or producing acid, according to 10News. The tea also affected the bacterial enzymes and prevented the formation of the sticky material that binds plaque to teeth.
A similar study by Goeteborg University, where participants rinsed with tea for one minute 10 times per day, showed comparable results. Both studies showed that the more people rinsed, the more their plaque and bacteria levels fell.
Unfortunately, in order for the black tea to work its dental magic it must be without all the stuff we usually put in it, like sugar, milk, honey, etc. -- it must be truly "black."
And of course, drinking tea should not replace traditional oral hygiene.
The research is part of a collaborative study done in conjunction with the College of Dentistry at the University of Iowa and the Institute of Odontology at Goeteborg University in Sweden.
Earlier studies in Japan had shown that there are cavity-fighting benefits in green tea but the study decided to focus on black tea because it is more popular in Western culture.
The study found that a specific element of black tea, called polyphenols, killed or suppressed cavity-causing bacteria from either growing or producing acid, according to 10News. The tea also affected the bacterial enzymes and prevented the formation of the sticky material that binds plaque to teeth.
A similar study by Goeteborg University, where participants rinsed with tea for one minute 10 times per day, showed comparable results. Both studies showed that the more people rinsed, the more their plaque and bacteria levels fell.
Unfortunately, in order for the black tea to work its dental magic it must be without all the stuff we usually put in it, like sugar, milk, honey, etc. -- it must be truly "black."
And of course, drinking tea should not replace traditional oral hygiene.
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