Red wine could ward off cavities, study says

No one is suggesting people start rinsing with Merlot after every meal, but a new study suggests compounds in red wine might help ward off cavities and gum disease.

A study published Wednesday found two polyphenols in red wine — natural compounds that have antioxidant effects — that seem to help prevent common plaque-causing bacteria from forming sticky films on teeth and gums.

It’s not clear how, exactly, the polyphenols reduce the stickiness of bacteria that gloms onto gum tissue, and others cautioned the doses used in the experiments were in far higher concentrations than occurs naturally in wine.

But cavities, gum disease and tooth loss affect 60 to 90 per cent of the global population. “Traditional therapies used for the maintenance of oral health present some limitations, and the search of natural-origin therapies is gaining attention,” the Spanish team reported in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Cavities and other dental diseases start when bacteria in the mouth form sticky biofilms — colonies of bacteria

EVERY UNIVERSITY INVOLVED IN ORAL HEALTH RESEARCH IS LOOKING AT WAYS TO INTERRUPT (THIS) PROCESS.

difficult to kill. The bacteria form plaque and produce acid that can ultimately erode the surface of a tooth.

Four years ago, the same team grew cultures of cavitycausing bacteria in the lab, and then dipped the biofilms in different liquids. Red wine — with or without alcohol — as well as red wine spiked with grape seed extract were the most effective at getting rid of the bacteria.

The new study goes further. Working with cells that mimicked gum tissue, the researchers found two specific red wine polyphenols — caffeic and p-Coumaric acid — were better than total wine extracts at preventing porphyromonas gingivalis and other bacteria from sticking to gums. The effects were stronger when combined with a probiotic, so-called “friendly” bacteria thought to keep the gut healthy.

The exact mechanism isn’t known but the researchers think that metabolites that form when we start digesting polyphenols in our mouths might play a role.

“It’s wonderful, important work,” said Dr. Larry Levin, president of the Canadian Dental Association.

“Pretty well every university involved in oral health research is looking at ways to interrupt the process by which plaque adheres and causes dental damage,” he said.