Dental dangers for wine tasters
Just ten short wine tasting sessions are enough to erode your tooth enamel according to a new study, writes Helen Coburn
Print15 May 2015
Wine tasters had better look after those teeth! The School of Dentistry at the University of Adelaide has just completed some research into the effects of wine acid on teeth and the results don’t make pretty reading. Apparently, just ten short wine tasting sessions are enough to erode your tooth enamel and the less said, the better regarding the marathon sessions indulged in by professional wine makers and buyers, wine judges and wine club members.
The experts recommend coating the teeth with calcium or fluoride agents before a tasting or, if that’s not practical, to avoid cleaning the teeth on the morning of the event. That’s because the saliva coating which builds up on our teeth is an effective protector of enamel and it’s better not to remove it before the wine attack. After the tasting, rinse the mouth with water and, later on, clean with toothpaste on the finger or a tissue, rather than a brush, as brushing too soon can scratch enamel temporarily softened by acidity.
The study, published in the Australian Dental Journal, warned that enamel erosion is cumulative in wine professionals who taste regularly. That won’t come as a surprise to those in the wine trade who have long observed that lifetime tasters tend to develop a greyish cast to the teeth. Cheeringly, the study indicates that further research will be undertaken to develop more effective prevention measures.
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