Green Tea and your Teeth.
Japanese style green tea is so good for you, and good for your teeth too.
Research has been done by the University of California, Berkeley, which indicate many benefits from drinking Japanese
green tea. Isao Kubo, who has led the research at Berkeley, has shown that the compounds found in green tea work best
in their naturally occurring combination within the tea itself.
Natural green tea contains compounds which help kill some bacteria such as Streptococcus mutans: this bacteria is the one which is responsible for eroding tooth enamel and causing cavities.
The tannin found in green tea, and also good old ceylon tea, also has a useful function:
The tannin in tea helps inhibit this tooth- bacteria’s production of glucans. As the name implies, glucans are a glue-type substance
which many acid-forming bacteria use to stick to the teeth. After the bacteria have latched on to the teeth, they are thus enabled to eat their way into the teeth.
More green tea in your daily diet means a cleaner, fresher mouth which will deter bacteria from setting up house there.
Use green tea as a mouth wash to help the gums and the teeth stay healthy.
Source: Science News (141,16:253)
More green tea will promote a healthy digestive system.
Gastrointestinal upsets, and acne, often respond to green tea therapy, as green tea compounds work as an antiseptic. Green tea compounds can kill many yeasts, molds and bacteria which cause digestive ailments.
Drinking green tea will give benefits to your eye-sight and sharpen your brain.
Green tea improves the digestion of your food, helps restore the liver, kidneys and heart
Green tea helps to keep cholesterol levels regulated, and aids the elimination process.
Coriander, sage and thyme have similar compounds to those found in green tea, and can be used for similar therapeutic
effect.
Bloodroot juice will dissolve plaque on teeth. It contains a substance called sanguinarine, which inhibits some
bacteria and has the capacity to dissolve plque within eight days. Toothpastes which contain this ingredient,
if you can find them, are therefore likely to reduce plaque build-up on the teeth.
Source:The Lawrence Review of Natural Products (November 1990)
Isao Kubo has also found that an oil found in cashew nut shells is also effective for reducing plaque and discouraging
cavity-causing bacteria in the mouth.
Science News (139,12:191)