Cranberries, known for their ability to help thwart
urinary tract infections, may also help prevent tooth
decay and cavities, new research shows.
The same sticky compounds in the small red fruit that
help keep bacteria at bay in the bladder also appear to
help prevent bacteria from clinging to teeth, dental researchers
reported in the January issue of the journal Caries Research.
They also found it seemed to help ward off plaque, a
gooey substance formed from bits of food, saliva, and
acid that can harbor bacteria and eventually irritate
the gums.
"There's potential to find compounds there that prevent
dental cavities," Hyun Koo, an oral biologist at the University
of Rochester Medical Center in New York stated.
The ultimate goal is to extract the berry's protective
properties and add them to toothpaste or mouthwash, he
said, but it is still unclear exactly why the fruit is
so effective.
In the meantime, Koo warned people against drinking or
eating excessive amounts of cranberry-containing products.
"The biggest problem with any cranberry product is the
(food) industry -- they add sugar," he said. "Sugar is
the main enemy in causing cavities."
The fruit is also loaded with natural acid that can strip
away essential minerals in teeth, he added.
"At this stage you have the other negative factors ...
that prevent us from saying 'go ahead and swish with cranberry
juice,"' Koo said.
During the study, researchers coated a synthetic material
that acts like tooth enamel, called hydroxyapatite, with
cranberry juice. They then applied the cavity-causing
bacteria streptococcus mutans, plaque, or glucan -- a
type of enzyme that builds plaque.
The results, which took about seven months to obtain,
showed cranberries were about 80 percent effective in
protecting teeth, Koo said. More laboratory tests are
needed to try to isolate the active compounds before clinical
trials with patients can be considered, he added.
Koo's study is part of series of projects sponsored by
the National Institutes of Health
to study cranberries' health benefits. The agency is also
studying the fruit's impact on urinary tract infections
and how it is processed by the body.
Tooth decay is one of the most common conditions among
Americans, second only to the common cold, according to
the NIH.
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Reference
Source 89
November
24, 2005
