If you enjoy a glass of pinot noir or merlot of an evening, you may be helping to keep your teeth and gums healthy. According to research, red wine, because of the power of grape seed extracts contained in the liquid, fights against the bacterial biofilms that form on your teeth.
Red Wine Protects Your Body from Itself
In 2006 and earlier, researchers had noted the benefits of red wine for helping to control the inflammatory response to infection that makes gum disease so dangerous for your teeth and bones. You see, it’s not just bacterial infection that leads to tooth loss because of gum disease, it’s partly your body’s response. When bacteria penetrates deep into your tissue, your body declares “total war” on the bacteria, and it’s often your bone tissue that is collateral damage.
Researchers found, though, that the polyphenols in red wine were able to neutralize the inflammatory compounds that contributed to damage.
This means that drinking red wine could effectively reduce the damage of periodontitis, even if it didn’t help control the infection.
Red Wine Is an Effective Antibiotic
But now it turns out that red wine actually helps control infections, too. In recently released research, it was shown that wine contains antibacterial compounds that can effectively impair the growth of bacterial film on your teeth and gums.
Researchers grew oral bacterial cultures on enamel discs, then exposed the biofilms to several different test compounds:
- Red wine
- Dealcoholized red wine
- Wine extract solution spiked with grape seed and inactive dry yeast
- Wine extract solution not spiked
- Chlorhexidine
- A 12% alcohol solution
They found that red wine and dealcoholized red wine were effective against the growth of two of the five oral bacteria studied. Solutions spiked with grape seed were effective against a third species. None were as effective as the antibiotic rinse chlorhexidine, but that doesn’t go as well with pork loin.
So if you are enjoying your nightly glass of red wine, this is another reason to feel good about it. The only down side is the staining, but teeth whitening is very effective for that.
If you need help with teeth stained by red wine, or if the red wine isn’t doing enough to protect your oral health, please call (803) 781-9090 today for an appointment with a Columbus dentist at Smile Columbia Dentistry.
