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Green Tea May Boost Oral Health
And Help Reduce Tooth Loss
Drinking at least one cup of green tea may improve
dental health and reduce the risk of loosing teeth
by about 20 per cent, according to a new study
from Japan.
Drinking more cups of Green tea daily appears to provide
additional risk reductions; five or more cups a day associated
witha 23 per cent reduction in risk, according to findings from
the Ohsaki Cohort 2006 Study published in Preventive Medicine.
Previous studies have reported that green tea catechins may inhibit
the action of oral bacteria linked to development of periodontal
disease, the researchers noted.
“A number of experimental studies have shown that green tea
catechins inhibit oral bacteria, while some experiments have
indicated that the concentration of tea catechin conferring the
above effect should be more than 100 mg/100 ml,” wrote the
authors. “A typical preparation of green tea contains a catechin
concentration of 50-150 mg/100 ml. “Therefore, this amount of
catechin contained in one cup of green tea might be sufficient to
aid tooth retention,” they added.
The majority of nutritional healthcare science on tea has focussed
on green tea specifically; Benefits reported for reducing the risk
of Alzheimer’s and certain cancers, improving cardiovascular and
oral health, as well as aiding in weight management.
Green tea contains between 30 and 40 per cent of beneficial
polyphenols, while black tea (green tea that has been oxidized by
fermentation) contains between 3 and 10 per cent. Oolong tea is
semi-fermented tea and is somewhere between green and black
tea. The four primary polyphenols found in fresh tealeaves are
epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), epigallocatechin, epicatechin
gallate, and epicatechin.
Study Details
The researchers analysed data from 25,078 people aged between
40 to 64 years. By measuring tooth loss in people with up to 20 teeth
still remaining, the researchers calculated that one to two cups of
green tea per day was associated with an 18 per cent reduction in
tooth loss risk. The same reduction was calculted for three to four
cups per day, while five or more cups was associated with a 23 per
cent reduction in risk. If the researchers limited or extended the data
for people with less than ten, or up to 25 teeth, the same protective
levels of green tea consumption were observed.
The researchers noted that the benefits could be linked to the
catechin content of green tea.
Source: Preventive Medicine
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2010.01.010
“Association between green tea consumption and tooth loss:
Cross-sectional results from the Ohsaki Cohort 2006 Study”
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