There are a lot of steps you can take to protect your oral health. Brushing twice a day, flossing once a day, using antibacterial mouthwash every time you brush—it can start to feel a little bit overwhelming. What if there was a nice, warm, comforting drink that could make your oral health just a little bit better?
As it turns out there isn’t a drink that can do this for you… there are two! Studies suggest that both coffee and green tea can protect teeth from cavities. Here’s what you should know about how these two drinks can contribute to your oral health.
Benefits of Green Tea
Green tea has earned a reputation for nourishing the entire body. As it turns out, studies have shown that it can do a lot for the health of your mouth as well. One Japanese study found that among 1,000 men who were surveyed, those who drank green tea frequently had fewer cavities and better oral health outcomes than those who didn’t.
Green tea is naturally antimicrobial, meaning that it can kill the bad bacteria that contribute to gum disease and tooth decay. It also happens to have a high pH, meaning it’s able to offset acids that erode enamel. Together, these factors make it particularly adept at preventing cavities.
Benefits of Coffee
While it may not be quite as famous for its health benefits, research suggests that drinking black coffee could do quite a bit to stave off tooth decay. Remarkably similar to the Japanese survey about green tea, a study of 1,000 men conducted by the Journal of Conservative Dentistry found that those who drank coffee without any sugar or milk had fewer cavities than those who did not.
This may be due to coffee’s anti-adhesive properties. Some studies have found that coffee has hampered common gum-disease-causing bacteria, like S. mutans, from binding to the teeth.
Preventing Stains
While coffee and tea both have marked oral health benefits, they share one significant drawback—the stains they leave on teeth. If you want to take advantage of these drinks’ oral health benefits, here are some ways you may be able to do so while avoiding those stains.
- Use a straw so the beverages spend less time in contact with your teeth
- Brushing and flossing beforehand can prevent stains from adhering to plaque deposits
- Brush and floss after drinking to clean your teeth
- Pair with water to wash the beverages down
While tooth discoloration is a concern, it’s still worth taking advantage of these beverages’ oral health benefits. Pair them with brushing and flossing, and you should be able to avoid cavities for quite a while to come.
About the Author
Dr. Marc Thomas has been practicing dentistry for 30 years, and he has worked incredibly hard to build a practice that can offer his patients the highest quality of dental care. He stays on top of the latest developments in oral medicine in order to offer all his patients the absolute best that dentistry has to offer. Dr. Thomas earned his DDS from the University of the Pacific, then served in the U.S. Army Dental Core. If you have any questions about a diet that prevents tooth decay, he can be reached at his website or by phone at (775) 626-3535.