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UK Against Fluoridation

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Australia - Wine puts the acid on teeth

Wine puts the acid on teeth
DAMIEN BROWN
August 28, 2008 12:00am
INDULGING in too much wine may give you more than a headache.Tasmanian dentists have become increasingly concerned about a rise in tooth erosion that has been linked to drinking wine. Australian Dental Association Tasmanian branch president Rodney Geelan said many Tasmanians who enjoyed a tipple of red or white simply did not know wine could be harming their teeth. "Just like we saw many years ago a rise in teenage tooth erosion caused by the consumption of sugary fizzy drinks, we are starting to see different causes presenting themselves now and one of those is wine," he said. "Drinking and tasting wine is a large part of Australian lifestyle and it is the high acidic rate of wine that causes that damage to teeth and can erode the enamel." Dr Geelan said it generally affected those who consumed a large amount of wine. The odd sip with dinner was not considered harmful. But he said a reduction of the risk was advisable. "When you consume anything that is acidic, like these sugary drinks, it is important to remember you should wait anywhere up to two hours before brushing your teeth," he said. "The acid will almost immediately start to eat away at your teeth, and brushing can in fact scrape a lot of the enamel off your teeth. "You should rinse with water, and another good idea is to drink wine with cheese because it will neutralise the effect." Dr Geelan said chewing low-sugar gum and using tooth mousse or gels was a good idea too. He said beer was less harmful to teeth because it contained fluoride. A study by GlaxoSmithKline found there had been a 60 per cent increase in acid wear, almost half of it caused by wine consumption. It said any food or drink with a pH of 5.5 or lower was considered harmful to teeth, and wine had a range of between 3.0 to 3.8. White wine is slightly more acidic than red. Most cases reported to dentists also involved wine merchants and tasters. Signs of wear include teeth losing their brightness, discolouration and sensitivity.

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