Study: White wine can darken tooth stains

Mar 31, 2009

Red wine has long been known to stain teeth. But white wine? A study by New York University dental researchers found that drinking white wine can also increase the potential for teeth to take on dark stains.

The study findings were presented today at the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) meeting in Miami, according to an NYU press release.

The researchers compared two sets of six cow teeth, whose surface closely resembles that of human teeth, and used a spectrophotometer, an instrument that measures color intensities, to evaluate staining levels. They found that teeth soaked for one hour in white wine before being immersed in black tea had significantly darker stains than teeth immersed for one hour in water before exposure to the tea.

"Dipping teeth in white wine for one hour is similar to the effect of sipping the wine with dinner," said Mark Wolff, D.D.S., Ph.D., a professor and chairman of the department of cariology and comprehensive care at the NYU College of Dentistry, in the press release. Dr. Wolff oversaw the study, which was led by Cristina Dobrescu, a third-year student at the NYU College of Dentistry.

"The acids in wine create rough spots and grooves that enable chemicals in other beverages that cause staining, such as coffee and tea, to penetrate deeper into the tooth," Dr. Wolff said in the release.

Still, red wine continues to beat out white wine when it comes to staining teeth. When the researchers repeated the experiment with red wine, the resulting stains were significantly darker than those in the white wine group. "Red wine, unlike white, contains a highly pigmented substance known as chromogen," Dr. Wolff explained.

But he added that connoisseurs concerned about staining need not cut back on their consumption. "The best way to prevent staining caused by wine, as well as other beverages, is to use a toothpaste containing a whitening agent," Dr. Wolff advised.