It's like a Wonder-Drug that tastes good! (Like I needed an excuse to drink more wine.
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Red wine may be good for your teethMar 11 2006
[a href="vny!://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/chi-0603100111mar10,1,6874237.story?coll=chi-entertainmentfront-hed"]Western Mail[/a]
IT WAS once up there with coffee on the banned list of substances for those who wanted to maintain a healthy smile with shiny white teeth. But now it seems there is a good excuse for lovers of red wine to pour themselves a glass, with researchers claiming it is actually beneficial for the bite.
Compounds known as polyphenols in red wine have been found to stave off periodontal diseases which affect the gums and bone around the teeth, often leading to permanent tooth loss. Periodontitis affects 65% of adults over 50 and 15% of adults aged between 21 and 50.
Scientists from Universite Laval in Quebec, Canada, found that red wine polyphenols help reduce the inflammation that arises from periodontitis. They presented their findings at the 35th annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research in Orlando, Florida, and published them in the US Journal of Dental Research.
It is yet another shot in the arm for wine-lovers who claim it is fine to enjoy a glass in moderation for its numerous reported health benefits.
Richard Ballantyne, of Ballantynes wine merchants in Cardiff and Cowbridge, said the effect is that "people no longer see wine as a vice".
He said, "When there are stories about the health benefits of wine, people start to understand that a glass or two in moderation can be beneficial. "It's not seen as a health drink but nor is it seen as being particularly bad for you.
"The wine boom over the past six years coincides with research looking at the French paradox where they found a nation that has low heart disease, put down in part to their consumption of red wine."
He said he had not yet heard about the research into oral hygiene and did not expect a big rush but said, "a ripple effect can become a big wave".
However it is not all good news as dentists do believe that the whiteness of teeth can be adversely affected by red wine. Tooth discoloration is caused by coloured molecules such as tannins and those same polyphenols, which become absorbed by the tooth enamel's surface.
Usuf Chikte, associate dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Stellenbosch, in South Africa, has argued that drinking wine could even make teeth crumble away.
"Wine itself will not rot your teeth, but since acid is present in alcohol, it will wear away the enamel on your teeth, exposing the softer dentine underneath," he said.
A local wine company approached Chikte when it found its medical aid had to pay a considerable amount for workers' dental problems, especially the wine tasters who rinse their mouths with wine up to 120 times per day.
"Many of them had to get fillings or crowns because their teeth were so damaged. "I found that the real problem was the regular exposure of their teeth to the acid in wine."
The worst thing you can do after a wine-drinking session, according to his dissertation, is to brush your teeth immediately."The acid in the wine softens the enamel on your teeth, and if you use a toothbrush, it will result in scratching off the enamel."
If you want a wine that is high in polyphenols, best to choose a red, and one that has been grown in places like Argentina. Recent research by Professor Roger Corder, head of the department of experimental therapeutics at the William Harvey Research Institute in London, reveals why.
He said, "High altitude wines are particularly rich in polyphenols.Why? Because UV radiation increases at higher elevations and results in a greater concentration of polyphenols in these wines."
Prof Corder is currently doing research on the wines from the hilly region of Nuoro, Sardinia, and the Republic of Georgia, as he thinks the consumption of wines from high altitude vineyards may contribute to a greater life expectancy. Something else to drink to.
And here are some more benefits
If you're going to take health drinks, you might as well ensure they taste good - and red wine has been found to have a multitude of assets.
Anti-inflammatoryAll alcoholic beverages have anti-inflammatory properties. But the complex polyphenols found in wine make it more effective in this area.
Cuts stroke risk"Intake of wine is associated with lower risk of stroke," concluded a 16-year Danish study led by Dr Thomas Truelsen of Copenhagen University Hospital. Published in the Journal of the American Heart Association in December 1998, the study again pointed to the drink's high antioxidant content.
Lowers cholesterolSeveral studies have also indicated that red wine can raise HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol) and prevent LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) from forming.
Protects from coldsExperts at five Spanish universities found that people who drank more than two glasses of red wine a day had 44% fewer colds than teetotallers. Drinking one glass of red wine a day also protected against colds, but to a lesser extent.
Anti-tumourResearch published in the spetgwpdt medical magazine Thorax suggests that each daily glass of red wine gives 13% protection against cancer when compared with non-drinkers.
The researchers, from the University of Santiago de Compostela, La Coru a, said that the beneficial effects are due to the tannins in red wine, which have antioxidant properties.
Promotes longevityParts of the world with high vineyards, and hence polyphenol-rich wines, have been reported to have an increased number of centenarians.
Prevents heart diseaseSerge Renaud's famous 1998 study found that drinking red wine helps prevent heart disease. At the University of Bordeaux he found moderate consumption (two or three glasses per day) was linked to a 35% reduction in death rates from cardiovascular disease.
