On the herbal tea packaging you may often find an inscription stating that it is 100% natural product, which has been collected manually. There are no harmful impurities in it, and theory, it can’t be more harmful than processed foods. However, studies show that dedicated fans of herbal tea can have dental problems that are directly related to their tea drinking habits.
Blends, containing some types of fruits (lemon, black currant and raspberry), can dissolve tooth enamel. In an experiment conducted at the University of Manchester Dental Clinic in England, previously removed from the patients teeth were placed 3 different solutions. The first one was a herbal tea from black currant leaves and ginseng root with vanilla, the second one was an ordinary black tea and the third one was water. After 14 days it turned out that the appearance and structure of the teeth, which were placed in ordinary tea and water, did not change in any way. However, black currant herbal tea dissolved a layer (a few thousandths of a millimeter thick) of tooth enamel. This seemingly tiny figure actually carries a big threat, given the fact that people who drink herbal teas for years, will have a much more serious damage.
It has been a known fact for a long time that sugar damages tooth enamel; however, the threat of acids contained in herbal and fruit teas is a less studied subject. It is only known that some fruits, especially citrus, contain a large number of acids and, therefore, it should not be a surprise that tea mixes based these fruits harm our teeth. At the same time, fruit-free mixes, like chamomile or mint teas do not carry any threat to your teeth.
In addition, the researchers do not recommend brushing your teeth immediately after consuming fruit tea, since the enamel is softened by the acids and can easily be cleaned off with an ordinary toothbrush. After such procedure, the teeth will appear clean and smooth only because they lose the upper layer of the enamel. As a result, they will be completely unprotected from other mechanical damages and bacteria. After about four months, the negative effect will become more pronounced: the sensitivity to hot and cold drinks will increase, the teeth will become prone to crumbling and all due to the thin enamel.
As an option, fans of fruit and herbal teas can rinse their mouth with clean or salted water. This will wash off acid residues and will not damage the dental coating in any way. This method of cleaning is mandatory for those, who can't limit the use of herbal tea to 1-2 mugs per day for some reason.
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