Drink wine, fight cavities?

Call it fluoride for grown-ups: New research suggests a crisp chardonnay may fight cavities.

Italian researchers who tested supermarket-bought red and white wines report both were effective in controlling the growth of bacteria that cause tooth decay and sore throats.

Sadly, though, the ingredients work best when you remove them from wine.

The researcher says the components in wine that fight oral bacteria might one day be added to mouthwashes and toothpastes. Experiments are already being carried out in humans to test wine's effects on cavities and upper respiratory tract infections, according to Gabriella Gazzani of the faculty of pharmacy at the University of Pavia in Italy.

Her research team has been looking at components of food that might possess any kind of biological activity.

It was already known wine contains a number of biologically active compounds that, once they reach the stomach and digestive tract, have health benefits. One or two glasses a day of red wine has been shown to cut the risk of coronary heart disease and cancer.

Scientists who once tested 16 Chilean reds showed antimicrobial activity against six strains of helicobacter pylori, the bacteria that cause stomach ulcers. Others have shown red and white wines are as effective as bismuth salicylate (Pepto-Bismol) against "traveller's diarrhea."

As well, according to a background release, wine has been used "since antiquity" in wound healing. In the Bible, Luke tells how the Good Samaritan "went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine."

But this is the first study to show wine may have health benefits from the moment it wets lips and gum.

Gazzani's team, whose work will be published in the next issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, tested the bacteria-fighting activity of commercial red and white wines against eight strains of oral streptococci. The bacteria can colonize tooth surfaces, triggering plaque formation. They can also cause pharyngitis - infection of the pharynx or tonsils.

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Two wines - an Italian red, Valpolicella Classico DOC Superiore, and an Italian white, Pinot Nero DOC, both 2003 vintages- were purchased from a local supermarket.

The wines were de-alcoholized before testing to rule out any effect of ethanol.

In lab experiments, both wines were active against streptococci. The red had a stronger effect than the white, though the difference was not statistically significant, meaning it may have been due to chance.

Gazzani says the organic acids in wine, such as acetic, citric, lactic, succinic and tartaric acids "are responsible for the antibacterial activity against oral streptococci." The acids are found naturally in grapes or are produced during fermentation.

The finding suggests wine "enhances oral health," the researchers conclude.

The team got better results with chemicals removed from the wine than from the wine itself, suggesting there are other ingredients in wine that counteract the antibacterial work.

Gazzani says the main cavity-causing sugar is sucrose. "Wines are not so rich in sugar, and in particular they are poor in sucrose," she says.

Still, wine bottles won't be carrying the Canadian Dental Association seal of approval anytime soon. President Dr. Darryl Smith cautioned that the research is "very early on" and has not been proven in humans.

"There may be things in our diet that if we eat will contribute to our overall health and it would nice to think - really nice to think - that some of the things that we may really enjoy are helpful in moderation," said Smith, who practises in Valleyview, Alta.

"But the bottom line is, brushing and flossing and eating well are the really important things right now" in preventing tooth decay, he says.

Article written by Sharon Kirkey for Canwest News Service.

Source: www.Canada.com